Umpires in the firing line

Durban – Umpires Ian Gould and Richard Illingworth were once again the men in the spotlight as the fourth day of the first Test between South Africa and New Zealand was abandoned with no play possible for the second successive day at Kingsmead yesterday.

It was a controversial decision because there was no longer any surface water on the outfield, thanks to a strong wind that blew across the ground all day, and the return of sunshine in the afternoon, the sun having also shone brightly for most of the third day. But the umpires deemed the field too soft, and therefore dangerous.

The umpires also decided that the field should dry out by natural means, not allowing the groundstaff on to the field to try and speed up the process using the various means available to them such as blowdryers, gas burners and hessian mats.

Match referee Andy Pycroft declined to speak to the media and the International Cricket Council said Cricket South Africa (CSA) should answer any queries.

CSA chief executive Haroon Lorgat admitted their decision to relay the field after players had complained how hard it was last August had left the field vulnerable when heavy rain fell.

“Following our first experience during August last year and the feedback received from both teams, we have relaid the outfield to make it more suitable for Test match cricket. However, the unseasonal rain at this time of year had impacted our preparations of the newly-laid outfield. The flood conditions more than a month ago had affected the decompacting process at Kingsmead.

“SuperSport Park, on the other hand, was relaid by ‘overseeding’ it with a winter grass and the results have been impressive.

“It is most unfortunate and certainly beyond our control that the heavy unseasonal rains in Durban had impacted our plans,” Lorgat said.