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Kapil committee completes pitch inspection

The Kapil Dev-chaired BCCI committee in charge of grounds and pitches completed one part of its mission on Wednesday, with Dev, in company of Daljeet Singh and Kasturi Rangan, inspecting the M A Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bangalore.

With this, the first part of the committee's task -- to inspect all venues where the games, both Tests and ODIs, of the forthcoming India-Australia tour is to be played -- has been completed. The committee is expected to submit a comprehensive report to the board by month-end.

At the Chinnaswamy stadium, Kapil indicated that a few brown patches near the pavilion end needed to be corrected by the curator. The arena will host the third Test between India and Australia, between March 25-29.

Dev also suggested that the dressing rooms be modified in order to prevent leakage, and also admit more light. "Light is necessary to enable the batsmen padded up to get used to light conditions before they go out to bat," the former India Test star pointed out.

He however said that in his opinion, the stadium structure, outfield and pitches, both for the game and for practise, were in impeccable condition.

"I think the grounds in the country should be kept match fit throughout the year," Kapil told newsmen at the venue, "since that is how youngsters will get good conditions for practising in. Sprucing up a ground just before an international match is not good," he added.

Kapil also called for more domestic games -- especially the Deodhar and Wills tournaments -- to be played under lights. "We have seven stadia with lights, these facilities are not being put to good use, because now only internationals are being played under lights. Using lights for domestic matches will also help keep the infrastructure in good shape, and also help our young players get used to playing under lights," Dev said.

Going off on a tangent, Dev said he would suggest to the BCCI that it takes the initiative in organising press briefings for the captains of sides engaged in international contests. "There should be a regular post match or, in case of Tests, post-play briefing each day," Dev said. "The board should take the initiative in getting the rival captains together before the media. I will definitely mention this in my report to the board," Dev said, adding, "When I was captain, I used to dislike people just hanging around and asking questions, the better thing to do is to hold regular press briefings behind closed doors so the people coming in can be scrutinised."

Reverting to the subject of stadia, Kapil said that the concerned associations should, in his view, be given full right to the grounds in their jurisdictions, so that they can be maintained on par with international standards. "In some places the associations don't own the grounds which is unfortunate, as they are able to rent it only a few days before a game," Kapil pointed out. "That way, a pitch can't be laid properly and conditions maintained to the required standard."

Karnataka State Cricket Association Secretary C Nagaraj, who was present along with Dev and the members of his committee, told the media that no less that Rs 110 million had been spent, in the past four years, in order to bring the facility on par with the best in the world.