Buttler criticizes the ‘poor’ Dharamsala outfield and warns players against diving for balls in the deep. Jos Buttler warned his England players against diving into the deep against Bangladesh, calling the sandy Dharamsala outfield “poor” and questioning the location’s suitability to hold a World Cup match.
The outfield for Bangladesh’s six-wicket victory over Afghanistan on Saturday was judged “average” by the match authorities despite its patchwork appearance and sandy foundation, which may have contributed to Mujeeb Ur Rahman’s knee sticking into the ground while diving to stop a boundary.
Mujeeb was “lucky” to escape a serious injury, according to Afghanistan’s coach Jonathan Trott, who also warned England players about the state of the outfield. However, according to the ICC, independent pitch specialist Andy Atkinson is “comfortable” with the outfield after inspecting it on Sunday.
On Sunday afternoon and Monday morning, England practised at the picturesque HPCA stadium, and skipper Buttler acknowledged he was worried about the outfield. “I think it’s poor, in my own opinion,” he stated. “I believe it goes against everything you want to be as a team whether you’re talking about being careful diving, or perhaps being careful when you’re fielding.
“To save a run, you want to dive across a row of houses. Obviously, the outfield’s surface and current state are not ideal. However, we won’t make excuses out of it. We’ll change with it. However, if you feel like you have to restrain yourself, that’s not where you want to be as a player or a member of a team.
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Due to the state of the outfield, an India vs. Australia Test match was abruptly postponed at Dharamsala earlier this year; yet, the venue immediately hosted two IPL games. Buttler took part in one of those and commented, “The outfield is different from when we played here in the IPL.”
Buttler advised caution in the deep, saying that it was “not what you want to be doing when you’re playing for your country.” “You want to put your body on the line, try to save every single run, and have faith in the field,” he continued. It falls short of what it could and ought to be.
