BBL 2023 match between Melbourne Renegades And Perth Scorchers Abandoned Due To 'Dangerous' Pitch

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BBL 2023 match between Melbourne Renegades and Perth Scorchers was abandoned due to dangerous pitch condition at the GMHBA Stadium in Geelong on Sunday. Heavy rain on the eve of the match at the GMHBA Stadium in Geelong seeped under the covers and onto the playing surface.

The umpires first halted the game after 6.5 overs and later abandoned it as the two teams shared one point each. Melbourne Renegades won the toss and opted to bowl first. They lost two early wickets and were reduced to 18/2 in 4.3 overs due to due to the variable bounce. Renegades' Aaron Hardie played and missed on several occasions.

But the situation deteriorated in the seventh over. Wicketkeeper-batter Josh Inglis was hit in the groin by pacer Will Sutherland that swing back a long way. In the same over Inglis inside edged a similar delivery that was dropped by wicket-keeper Quinton de Kock.

The very next delivery from Sutherland, Inglis attempted a drive but the ball ballooned over his bat through to Quinton de Kock who himself looked perplexed by the nature of the pitch.

After players expressed their disproval, umpires Ben Treloar and Simon Lightbody came together to discuss the state of the pitch, before taking the players from the field with Perth Scorchers scorecard reading for 30/2 in 6.5 overs.

Former Australia captain Aaron Finch told Fox Cricket the ball had "taken big divots out of the wicket … gripped the seam and was just bouncing ridiculously".

"We wanted to give it every chance, that's why we started play," standing umpire Treloar told Fox Cricket after the match was called off.

"It looked alright on top and the first few overs we were really quite hopeful with what we saw. But just at the end, that last one, that was enough for us to consider that (pitch) dangerous. It was that last delivery, that was the one that got us to that dangerous position and the safety of the players is paramount," he added.

Fans were left highly disappointed after the incident. Cricket Australia confirmed that all the 6601 fans who turned out to GMHBA Stadium will be refunded the cost of their tickets.

"CA will conduct a thorough review into the extremely frustrating circumstances that have resulted in the game being abandoned and a huge disappointment for fans and players," the governing body said.