Ian Botham, ek purane Somerset kheladi aur prasiddh cricketer, ne Taunton ke pitch ko “appalling” kaha hai

Unka kehna hai ki Durham ke saath do din mein khatam hue match mein pitch ki haalat ne khel ko “farce” bana diya. 23 July 2025 ko X par unka post viral hua, jisme unhone Somerset ke pitch ki kharab tasveerein dikhai aur iski shikayat ki. Pitch par sukhayi ghaas aur uneven satah ne match ko prabhavit kiya, jo pehle bhi 1925 mein Jack Hobbs ke record match mein bhi dikkat ban sakta tha. Durham ne match se pehle shikayat ki thi, lekin parivartan nahi hua.

Before a ball is bowled… As an ex Somerset player I find this appalling… at a time when County Cricket is under pressure for relevance as a breeding ground for International
Players and Somerset members have apparently voted for the status quo, the club produces this pitch.… pic.twitter.com/qAU0CJbPlf

— BeefyBotham (@BeefyBotham) July 23, 2025

Yaad kijiye 1977 ka Somerset ka safal samay, jab Botham ne apne batting aur bowling se naam kamaya tha. Aaj ke pitch se tulna karna mushkil hai, kyunki us samay pitch behtar the. Durham, jo aksar Somerset se kam maana jata hai, is match mein underdog tha, lekin pitch ne unki takat ko aur kamzor kiya. 2006 mein Taunton ko mahila cricket ka ghar banaya gaya tha, jahan bhi achhe pitch ki ummid ki jati hai.

Pitch ne match ko jaldi khatam kiya, jisse 700 runs bhi bane, jo ek rochak drishya tha. Somerset ke Lammonby ne 89 run banaye, jo unki maharatha dikhata hai.

Pitch ki kharab haalat ne khel ki quality girai. Durham jaise chhote team ke liye yeh unfair tha, kyunki unka khelna mushkil ho gaya. ECB ko ispe action lena chahiye, varna har team aisa kar sakti hai.

Ye match ab khatam ho chuka hai, lekin agle matches ke liye betting par vichar karen. Durham, chhoti team hone ke bawajood, apne resilience ke liye jaani jati hai. Unke bowler aur batsman ek saath khel sakte hain. “Match Winner” bet par Durham par 3.5 odds ke saath 30% safalta ki sambhavna hai. “Top Batsman” bet mein Durham ke kisi naye kheladi par dhyan dein, jinka 25% chance ho sakta hai.

Botham ka gussa samajh mein aata hai, lekin Durham ko bhi mauka dena chahiye tha. Pitch sudharna zaroori hai taaki chhoti teams bhi apna talent dikha sakein.