Cricket Southern Bayside semi-final abandoned after 60.4 overs because of unpredictable wicket

A Cricket Southern Bayside Championship Division semi-final was stopped after 60 overs when the umpires ruled the wicket had become unfit for play. Here’s what will happen next.

The Cricket Southern Bayside semi-final between South Caulfield and Beaumaris took a bizarre turn on Saturday when the umpires called off play after 60 overs because of the state of the wicket.

The umpires had become increasingly concerned about the lack of consistency in the wicket at Princes Park and halted the match after 60.4 overs of the Championship Division clash.

South was 6-153 and its seventh-wicket pair Sam Holten (25no) and Jon Curtis (32no) had put on 57.

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The wicket, prepared by a curator from Glen Eira Council, was a new strip and had been playing unpredictably.

It was watered and rolled after play was abandoned and Cricket Southern Bayside ruled that South would receive nine more overs today (Sunday), leaving Beaumaris to face 70.

Many observers questioned why the umpires took 60.4 overs to decide the wicket was unfit for play.

Blimey. Play in the Cricket Southern Bayside Championship semi-final between South Caulfield and Beaumaris called off after 60 overs, with the umpires declaring the wicket unfit for play. It’s being worked on for the second day tomorrow.

— Paul Amy (@PaulAmy375) March 9, 2019

But CSB operations manager Darren Anderson said they believed the deck was deteriorating to the point it was getting unsafe.

“They had seen it was playing up and down, balls leaping off a length and the odd one shooting through low,’’ he said.

“I believe they were in consultation with the captains throughout the afternoon and at the drinks break with 20-odd overs to go they decided enough balls had been behaving in an unsafe manner … and if another one was to do the same they would call a halt to play.

“In the very next over they felt a ball took off from a length and went past at a dangerous height, even though it didn’t hit the batsman. They felt it was enough to stop play.

“It’s not the first instance of a game being abandoned due to a wicket being deemed unsafe.

Beaumaris captain Sam Coates believed the right decision was made.

But it’s unusual it would happen at Princes Park, which is one of the best grounds in the competition and has been for a number of years. But ultimately the umpires were of the opinion that at that time it was unsafe to go on.’’

Anderson said South Caulfield was disappointed “because they felt they’d got through a pretty tough time when they were 6-90 and had built a partnership to get to 6-150, which is a decent enough score’’.

“But I believe the Beauie guys were also were aware of how much it had deteriorated in their eyes and were mindful they would have to potentially bat on it later in the day,’’ he said.

Anderson said noted curator Bomber Murray had watered and rolled the wicket after play in the hope it would improve for the second day.

He said the option of playing a one-dayer on Sunday had been discussed, but the rules and conditions of Cricket Southern Bayside didn’t allow it and neither team was keen.

South Caulfield had lost Elliott Bradley (15), Bradley Erasmus (18), Lewis Mildenhall (26), Jye Sampson (0) and Dan Ford (19) before Holten and Curtis steadied the innings.

South captain Luke Russell said he was disappointed play was halted so late in the day.

“It shouldn’t have taken 60 overs to make a decision,’’ he said.

“If anything the wicket got better. It was pretty tough early — it was bloody tough. Balls were kicking off a length but it was more of a trampoline bounce. It wasn’t dangerous, you just couldn’t play any shots.

“But for them to pull the pin when we were in a 60-run partnership … is ridiculous.’’

Russell took a poke at Beauie, saying “for the fielding side to complain about the batting conditions is unheard of and when we were 6-97 they weren’t saying a word, they were all up and about.’’

“But when we were at 6-150 they were thinking well, it’s getting daunting chasing, say, 200 on that.’’

But Beaumaris captain Sam Coates said the umpires made the right decision.

“The ball was really gripping and some of the balls were really bouncing with great height, totally erratically,’’ he said.

“It was a cumulative effect. It wasn’t one ball in the 60th over that they said, well that’s enough, it was cumulative.

“An over before the umpires pulled the pin a kid got hit in the head by a 17-year-old who bowls about 80kph. It leapt off a length and hit him in the head.

“We probably struck their batsmen in the ribs, on the gloves and on the arms probably 40 times for the day, so it was a cumulative effect.

“Even when the opposition captain Luke Russell was batting we both agreed it was unfit for play and it was dangerous but we neither of us knew the rules and what the implications were.

“Then another one leapt off a length from the same bowler and the umpires said, ‘Enough is enough, we are walking off, it’s unsafe’.’’

Russell said he didn’t think the wicket was dangerous “but they were the toughest conditions I’ve faced for a long time’’.