Heard first, Ben Stokes’ statement on Wednesday that he had “never seen” a pitch like the one at the JSCA Stadium here is sure to convey a sense of shock and dread.
But going by his demeanour in Thursday’s pre-match briefing it was reflective more of the confusion regarding how the turf will play.
“There is a bit more grass taken off from yesterday [Wednesday],” Stokes said. “You do expect the wicket to look different on the day before [the Test] than two days out. But our overall thinking and understanding is that it hasn’t changed much from yesterday.”
