Sheffield Shield clash between New South Wales and Tasmania moved from SCG amid concerns over pitch

New South Wales have been forced to shift their home fixture against Tasmania out from the Sydney Cricket Ground due to problems with the pitch. The Blues were set to lock horns with Tasmania at the SCG, but the match will now be played at the Drummoyne Oval in the inner west area of Sydney.

The cricket association of New South Wales claims that the damage was sustained during the practice session of the Sydney Roosters ahead of the NRL grand final. Because of the damage, the pitch curators will not be able to prepare a good wicket for the clash between New South Wales and Tasmania, which is scheduled to begin from Friday.

We have been advised that the SCG will be unavailable for the Marsh Sheffield Shield match against Tasmania starting on Friday.Drummoyne Oval is the likely venue, with confirmation expected in the next 24 hours.More: https://t.co/x56tvNtLym pic.twitter.com/iXy1AxyBiu

— Cricket NSW (@CricketNSW) October 14, 2019

As per the sources, there is more trouble in store for the venue. It may not be able to host the forthcoming One-Day Cup matches either because of the damage sustained.

Cricket NSW chief executive Lee Germon expressed his dissatisfaction over the situation by stating,

"It is a great disappointment to our players and everyone at Cricket NSW that we can no longer play there over the next week. Our male players were looking forward to playing four of their five home Shield matches and a one-day match at the SCG this season, something that has rarely happened over the past decade or so."

He further added that the New South Wales team were excited to play at the iconic venue after training there during the off-season. Lee also said that it was important for the current and future cricketers to play as much cricket as they can at the SCG.

However, the SCG Trust has denied that the damage was caused due to the practice session of the Roosters. They claim that the square was simply not ready at this point of the summer.

They even insisted that there were no concerns over the ground for the T20 international between Australia and Pakistan scheduled to take place at the SCG on 3rd November.

Also see – World Test Championship Schedule