Anybody else tired of these dead pitches?

YES!!

i think the about of matches played on dead flat wickets these days is an absolute disgrace! take the Pakistan/Sri Lanka series, sure it was good to see the batsmen getting big scores, Samarweera in particular, but when you get to the point where your JUST getting into the 3rd innings of the match on day 5...thats just not doing anyone any favours, its not good for test cricket!

for test cricket to stay at the forefront, it must produce results, and you cant get those on dead flat wickets, if Murali and Mendis cant bowl a side out on a 4th day...as i said, thats NOT good for test cricket

And people wonder why Test Cricket is becoming less popular.

I read that there has already been more draws this year than there was last year in Test match Cricket, and there is still 15 Test Matches left this year!

The shameful factor is that poor teams are now creating poor pitches to protect there teams.

Take the West Indies vs England series for example: 4 Test Matches, 3 of them draws. All 4 pitches were created for draws, because the WICB know that there sides batting line-up is not good enough to cope with the old West Indian style pitches.

New Zealand too are now creating pitches to protect themselves, it started in the England series last year. New Zealand are having pitches which suit there spinners and protect there batsmen, as Australia showed last year NZ have a volatile batting line-up.

Anyway even though the reason these flat pitches are created are to protect poor batting line-ups, but as you said, NZ would have a better chance of beating India on a pitch that offers some to batsmen and bowlers

Though I'm not sure about the India slant in your question, the pitches all over the world, of late, have been tending towards the flat side than anything. Even Australia has not been producing the kind of tracks they did till a few years ago. Probably, it has something to do with the decreasing interest towards test cricket and the advent of T-20. Flat pitches produce good batting scores, though it could also, as rightly pointed, dish out boring draws.

Again, my opinion is that of late, the result producing matches have increased (I could be proven wrong statistically) and the number of exciting matches have also increased.

I still wonder what is happening and why is there no official word of this shift in policy, surely ICC would not be letting out a state secret if it was part of a policy....

Last time the Indians were here, the green tops rather humiliated their so-called line up and I'm sure there were late night calls between the two managements attempting to defuse quite a timebomb.

India, or any team, do not like losing to NZ as we are seen as easy beats and the place to boost your average.

To be done like a dinner was not part of the Indian plan.

Coming back I believe there was an agreement we would NOT prepare green tops - although we covered this by suggesting how terrified we all were about Sharma.

Once we were 23-3 then 233-3 a draw was guaranteed and boredom too.

I'd rather watch Tendulkar playing a great innings and getting 50 than an open wicket practice. Ryder will remember his 200 but in time even he will realise it is hardly a tough challenge met head-on with that wicket.

Dan won't be TOO unhappy though. At least he got a bowl. I love to watch Dan bowl and think it's a shame he doesn't get much help in NZ conditions.

In the 2002 series he didn't bowl in either test. In 1999 he hardly bowled either, but when he did he got spanked. In the 3 innings he bowled in these were his figures.

overs/runs/wickets

1999

1st test

7 overs 20 / 1 The wicket was Prasad (#10)

20 overs 92 / 1 The wicket was Kumble

2nd test

16 overs 71 / 0

DNB

2002

1st test

DNB

DNB

2nd test

DNB

DNB

The pitch for this test was a joke but there definitely needs to be a balance.

i think we have seen a dead pitch at Napier due to the Indian fast bowlers performance in Ist innings of Ist test and Bhajj's performance in second innings of Ist match. This was bound to happen after first test defeat , so i don't find it surprising. Also i think NZ are going to produce another dead pitch in 3rd test to be safe . NZ knew exactly what they are doing and thats why they played two spinners.

Ano theres like 30 pages for just 10 hours of todays Hardys suspended.

I agree. What has happened to the old time curators? You didn't see too many dead pitches around 20-30 years ago

Do they use a drop in pitch in Napier?

nz adopt defensive strategy which cost them ... in last two series.. NZ made pitches for do or die and they got positives