‘It was a shocker of wicket’: Hardik Pandya lambasts pitch curators after IND vs NZ clash in Lucknow

India T20I captain Hardik Pandya slammed the Lucknow pitch after the hosts managed to register a win over New Zealand in the 2nd T20I on Sunday (January 29) at Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium.

It was a low-scoring thriller which went to penultimate ball and India succeeded in winning the game thanks to Suryakumar Yadav, who batted with full focus to take Men In Blue home with one ball remaining.

Suryakumar was the top scorer for India and he received good support from skipper Hardik Pandya for the fifth wicket partnership.

“To be honest, it was a shocker of a wicket. Both the games we have played on so far. I don’t mind difficult wickets. I am all up for that, but these two wickets are not made for T20. Somewhere down the line the curators or the grounds that we are going to play in should make sure they prepare the pitches earlier,” Pandya said after the match.

Batting first, New Zealand scored 99-8 in their allotted quota of 20 overs. Suryakumar remained unbeaten on 26, while Pandya contributed 15 runs.

The win helped India level the three-match T20I series 1-1.

“Even 120 would have been a winning total. Bowlers – they stuck to their plans and ensured they did not rotate the strike. We kept rotating the spinners. Dew didn’t play much part in this. They were able to spin the ball more than us. It was carrying through well. It was a shocker of a wicket,” Pandya added.