‘Not Safe For Players’: Irfan Pathan’s Brutal Remark On New York Pitch Ahead Of Blockbuster IND vs PAK

Former India cricketer Irfan Pathan slammed the pitch at the Nassau County International Cricket Stadium in New York and termed it dangerous for the players. The pitch in New York has been under the scanner given its inconsistent pace and bounce. In the first game at the venue, South Africa shot down Sri Lanka for just 77 runs before consuming over 16 overs to chase the paltry target. India also played their first game of the T20 World Cup 2024 against Ireland at the same venue and bowled out Ireland for a mere 96.

“Look, we definitely want to promote cricket in America, but this pitch is not safe for players. If we had a pitch like this in India, a match would never be played there again for a very long time. This pitch is definitely not good. I mean, we are talking about the World Cup here, not even a bilateral series,” Irfan Pathan said on Star Sports.

Irfan’s remarks came after several cricketers like Michael Vaughan and Wasim Jaffer slammed the substandard nature of the surface.

“Trying to sell the game in the states is great .. love it .. but for players to have to play on this sub-standard surface in New York is unacceptable. You work so hard to make it to the WC then have to play on this,” wrote Vaughan on X

Meanwhile, India are set to take on Pakistan at the same venue on June 9 and concerns are being raised about the pitch already. Even captain Rohit Sharma was not sure how the pitch would behave in the blockbuster match against Pakistan.

“I don’t know what to expect from the pitch,” said Rohit at the post-match presentation ceremony. “That’s why we decided to bowl, to see how the pitch plays out,” he added.