Photo Credit: Instagram Photo of @blackcapsnz
Afghanistan head coach Jonathan Trott and New Zealand head coach Gary Stead voiced their disappointment after the one-off Test was abandoned on Friday without a single ball being bowled.
“Personally, I was disappointed. We were very excited to play against New Zealand and put ourselves up against the challenge of that. The players have worked really hard,” Trott said, “(But) to try and play a Test match at this time of the year is always tricky…”
“In terms of facilities, we are obviously disappointed that we haven’t been able to play,” Trott said, adding: “But the amount of water that’s come down is unprecedented for this time of year…”
This was set to be Afghanistan’s 10th Test since their red-ball debut in 2018. However, Shaheed Vijay Singh Pathik Stadium, hosting its first Test, faced scrutiny over inadequate facilities and poor drainage. Despite sunny weather, there was no play for the first two days, drawing criticism.
In response, the stadium authorities and the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) arranged covers from Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi, and the Uttar Pradesh Cricket Association provided super soppers. Nevertheless, heavy rain caused waterlogging, preventing groundsmen from preparing the pitch in time.
Stead expressed similar sentiments saying, “It’s frustrating for us. It was our first Test match against Afghanistan and we were really excited about that as well.
They’ve been great competitors of ours over the last few World Cups and we’ve had some great games of cricket,” the New Zealand coach said.
“The most disappointing part for us is that we’ve lost that ability to be match-hardened and match-ready when we go into our Test match next week. So, the guys are really disappointed,” Stead added.
On the eve of the Test, Afghanistan captain Hashmatullah Shahidi stated that having a single ‘home venue’ would improve their consistency. Historically, Afghanistan has used various locations as home bases, including Greater Noida, Dehradun, Lucknow, and the UAE.
Trott further added, “If you have one fixed venue, then you can iron out the issues that arise. That’s always nice. But I think this maybe a result of not having played a lot of Test cricket in the past and still trying to find a venue that we can use consistently, so it would be nice to have one venue.”
Afghanistan will head to the UAE for their limited-overs series against South Africa next week, while New Zealand will depart for Sri Lanka on Saturday for a two-match Test series.
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