‘This is not on’: Aussie great fires up over India pitch storm

Australian cricket legend Mark Waugh has blasted the Ahmedabad curators for the late decision on which pitch would play host to the fourth Test.

Two pitches had been prepared for the final Test, but there was significantly more grass on the wickets than the one used for the Indore Test.

But the curators waited until extremely late to make the call, something Australian skipper Steve Smith had never seen in his career.

Waugh was baffled as to why the decision was left so late and called for some form of action to be taken.

“This is not on,” Waugh said.

“I don’t know how you don’t know what pitch you’re playing on.

“In Australia, I think the groundsman and curators are told months in advance, so they set up the pitch for the camera, the sidescreen, the spectators. But in India, it’s different.

“It’s a bit like county cricket. You used to turn up to county grounds and there would be three pitches prepared depending on who turned up for the opposition side, then they would decide.

“I don’t know what’s going on here but I think something needs to be done about this.”

Former Australian wicketkeeper Brad Haddin agreed the powers that be would have to “have a close look at it” in the future.

However, Haddin also believed the delayed call was down to Australia pulling what some considered a surprise victory in the third Test and forced a “panicked” India to reconsider what pitch to play on for the final encounter.

“If you go back to the last Test match, just before the Test, Rohit Sharma said, ‘I would like the next wicket to be a green wicket, get us ready for the Test championship,’” Haddin said.

“But Australia didn’t read that script, they won the Test match.

“I just think they prepared that wicket thinking Australia were going to lose that Test match, then all of a sudden panicked, and now they had to go back to a traditional Indian wicket.”