Sylhet outfield a cause for concern

The picturesque Sylhet International Cricket Stadium (SICS) is gradually turning into an injury trap for cricketers due to its 'below average' outfield littered with unwanted grass.

The outfield at the SICS was recently given a below-average rating by the ICC after a Test match between Bangladesh and New Zealand.

The outfield has remained a problem during the Sylhet phase of the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL), which came to a close yesterday.

Local grass types, commonly found in the tea gardens, are growing just outside of the playing square. This type of grass does not have deep roots and comes off easily when trampled on. Hence, the ground staff at SICS were often seen scraping away mouldy grass from the pitch.

"Since it's a hilly area, bad seeds come into the area with the air or the birds bring them in," a ground staff said.

The local sandy soil and the high presence of iron in the water are also major factors behind the once lush green outfield at the SICS now looking patchy.

The ground staff believe that the whole outfield needs to be laid out with new grass to restore it to its past state.

"If it was the same grass type all across the outfield, this [difficulty in maintaining consistent grass covering] would not have happened," the ground staff added.

Yesterday's first BPL game between Khulna Tigers and Fortune Barishal was also impacted by the outfield's quality with fielders risking injury almost every time they dived for the ball.

"It's unfortunate [quality of the outfield]. For such a great venue with such good facilities, the outfield should really be maintained effectively," a Khulna Tigers official said after the game.

"One of our fielders, Faheem Ashraf, got his knees stuck into the turf while fielding. He's now okay though," he added.

Officials at the BCB said they are keeping an eye on the situation and are ready to take the necessary steps.

"The process of renovation is done continuously. It will be under a maintenance process. The dew in Sylhet has been a problem but we are keeping things under watch to see what we can do," Syed Abdul Baten, BCB grounds and facilities manager, told The Daily Star yesterday.

BCB sources said that new grass will be laid out at the venue ahead of the ICC Women's T20 World Cup, which will take place in Bangladesh in September.

However, the Tigers are set to play in Sylhet in the Sri Lanka series in March, where the condition of the outfield is likely to remain more or less the same.