The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) reportedly sacked the curator of Lucknow’s Ekana Cricket Stadium after being blamed for preparing a “shocker of a pitch” for India vs New Zealand 2nd T20I – a low-scoring thriller, India won on Sunday with just a ball to spare. The Blues need just 100 runs to win a ‘do-or-die’ match, level three-match series 1-1. Surprisingly, the hosts had a tough time chasing the paltry target on a turning track.

India skipper Hardik Pandya wasn’t happy with the pitch on offer for IND-NZ T20 series and didn’t mince his words while criticising the Lucknow wicket, calling it a “shocker”.

India’s T20 vice-captain Suryakumar Yadav on Tuesday played down the ‘pitch controversy’, saying the wicket doesn’t matter a lot.

“We (Hardik and I) had a chat later on, and it was like, whatever we got in future we will go with it. It’s completely fine,” Surya said on the eve of the series-decider at Motera, PTI reported.

“It doesn’t matter what soil you play on. These are the things which aren’t in your control. We did what we had in our control, we had to adapt, apply on that ground and move on with the situation. But it was an exciting game.

“Any game, ODI or T20I, low or high scoring, if there’s competition in the game, wickets, I don’t think, matter a lot. You go out there, have a challenge, accept it and move on,” Surya added.

India required to chase 17 runs in last 12 balls, with Surya and Hardik in the middle. The duo brought down the equation to six runs from the last over.

“Actually, we have been batting together for a very long time now. We had some good partnerships in the past.

“At that time, it was very important for us to have good communication and have a nice atmosphere as we knew that it was a little tense in the last over.

“We were just having a laugh, backing each other and telling each other whoever got an opportunity let’s try and finish the game,” he said about their strategy.

The Mumbaikar attributed his exploits in domestic cricket to his composure while batting in tense situations.

“I’ve played a lot of domestic cricket before making my international debut, that has helped me a lot.

“You have to apply yourself a lot and the grind you have there, playing on different challenging tracks, I just carried it from there. Rest I’ve learnt seeing so many senior players in the team, talking to them. Every game, I try to put my best foot forward.” Surya is in line for a Test debut in the much-anticipated series against Australia beginning in Nagpur on February 9.

“Obviously, everyone wants to play Test cricket. You start your cricket at domestic level, playing with red ball only, and I played for Mumbai.

“We all know how exciting the series would be, but at the same time, it’s about staying in the present and the focus is on how to give your best for tomorrow’s game, then we have full time to think about Tests.” The world’s No. 1 T20I batter has come a long way since making his debut against England at the same venue on March 14, 2021.

Turning a touch emotional, he said: “I told my manager also ‘I’m back where it all began’. Even I took the steps slowly thinking of 2021 and how I came here.

“I’ve very good memories, but it will be completely different now. I’m very excited. Beautiful stadium, amazing crowd, looking forward to an exciting game tomorrow,” he signed off.

(With PTI Inputs)