India vs Australia: BCCI dismisses Chris Broad's report, claims Pune pitch wasn't poor

New Delhi: The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has dismissed match referee Chris Broad’s report that the pitch in Pune for the first Test between India and Australia was poor.

Broad rated the Pune track as poor after the match ended inside three days on a sharply turning wicket. Basis this report, the International Cricket Council (ICC) sought response from the Indian cricket board.

"Broad, in accordance with Clause 3 of the ICC Pitch and Outfield Monitoring Process, submitted his report to the ICC in which he expressed concern over the quality of the pitch," the ICC said in a statement.

But in its response, the BCCI objected the claim.

“That wasn’t a poor pitch. The Aussies scored 260 and 285 on it, after all. The definition of a poor pitch is that there’s uneven bounce, and batsmen are getting hurt. Did that happen in Pune?

“I agree the match ended early, India scored few runs (105 and 107), but Steve Smith scored a ton in the second innings, and KL Rahul scored a fifty. If a pitch doesn’t turn in the sub-continent, then where will it? We beg to differ… this isn’t a poor track. We disagree with Broad’s observation on the pitch. To term the Pune wicket as poor is harsh,” a BCCI official told TOI.

It's pertinent to note that, Pune's Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium was hosting it's first ever Test cricket, and the nature in which the pitch behaved, invited lots of criticism.

In the match, Aussie spinner Steve O'Keefe claimed 12 wickets for two identical 6-fors as the visitors completed an unlikely 333-run rout inside three days.