“The Boss of The Moss” Damien Hough has been called in to fix the New York pitch which has received heavy criticism

New York’s games for this T20 World Cup were supposed to be centrepiece events – headlined by India and Pakistan – but the Nassau County International Cricket Stadium has drawn attention for the wrong reasons and an Aussie has been called to the rescue.

World renowned Australian curator nicknamed ‘The Boss of The Moss’ is pulling out all stops to rescue New York’s Hell’s Kitchen pitch for the India and Pakistan blockbuster.

The International Cricket Council has released a statement acknowledging that the drop-in wicket transported 18 hours on the back of a truck from Florida to New York has not been up to World Cup standard in the matches it has hosted so far.

Adelaide’s respected groundsman Damien Hough – or ‘The Boss’ – has been working around the clock to try and rectify the volatility in the wicket and save one of the biggest and most watched sporting events on earth.

Adelaide Oval curator Damien Hough in 2014. Picture: Supplied

“T20 Inc and the ICC recognise that the pitches used so far at the Nassau County International Cricket Stadium, have not played as consistently as we would have all wanted,” an ICC statement read.

“The world-class grounds team have been working hard since the conclusion of yesterday’s game (India against Ireland) to remedy the situation and deliver the best possible surfaces for the remaining matches.”

Despite the embarrassment caused by the pitch which has cruelled the hopes of Sri Lanka and Ireland in their respective opening matches against South Africa and India, officials are confident in the fact the pitch is not dangerous.

It’s understood Hough’s focus will centre on addressing the inconsistent bounce in the pitch.

The heavy roller could not address the pitch issues during the Sri Lanka and South Africa match. Picture: Alex Davidson-ICC/ICC via Getty Images

To do this, the expert ground staff put in charge of the epic project by the ICC have top-dressed and levelled the surface to lessen the impact caused by grassy veins down the pitch in the opening two matches which proved to be horror batting surfaces for Twenty20 cricket.

The hope is that with the grass pushed in, the ball should hit a flatter surface and play more consistently.

It’s hardly a surprise the pitch has struggled for consistency given what it went through just to arrive in New York.

Prepared in Florida, then cut in half and transported on a convey of trucks for the long journey up the east coast of America, the pitches have been dropped in on steel trays into Eisenhower Park, a public park in Long Island, New York.

There were no warm-up series played on the pitch, so virtually organisers had no way of properly road-testing the surface in a proper match situation before the World Cup.

While critics like England great Michael Vaughan have described the pitch as unacceptable for T20 cricket, others have felt it refreshing to have a surface that suits fast bowlers not batsmen.

Cricket has a habit of launching into panic every time a limited overs surface offers something for the quicks and doesn’t play into the hands of batters.