"We've turned up in our own conditions and not known how the wicket's going to play" - Ponting compares BBL's poor pitches to DC's IPL 2023 plight

Former Australia captain and Delhi Capitals (DC) head coach Ricky Ponting compared the poor surface at the Sydney Showground Stadium used for the Big Bash League (BBL) to the one at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi for the 2023 Indian Premier League (IPL).

The ongoing low-scoring match between the Perth Scorchers and the Sydney Thunder has been far from an ideal T20 contest. The erratic bounce and the poor conditions in general resulted in the Thunder being restricted to 137-8 after being asked to bat first by the defending champions.

The Scorchers' bowling effort was led by Ashton Agar, who finished with astonishing figures of 4-1-6-2, while Cooper Connolly claimed three wickets as well. For the hosts, Alex Hales scored a fighting fifty to keep them in contention, but he also struggled against Andrew Tye's slower deliveries in particular that kept low.

The BBL has already witnessed a clash being abandoned due to a poor pitch. The clash between the Perth Scorchers and the Melbourne Renegades at the start of the season at the Simonds Stadium in Geelong was called off after just 6.5 overs of play.

Ponting lambasted the conditions in Sydney and narrated the difficulty with unpredictable wickets while managing DC in their home matches at the Arun Jaitley Stadium.

"I don't think the players will be able to turn up and look at the wicket and know exactly what they are going to get. I've been there with coaching in the IPL at Delhi, and we've had a bit of the same. We turned up in our own home conditions and not really know how the wicket is going to play. That is uncomfortable, no one wants that," Ponting said during commentary.

The Arun Jaitely pitch received an average rating for the second Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in 2023. It was also among one of the venues used for the 2023 ODI World Cup and particularly yielded some high-scoring contests. South Africa recorded the highest ODI World Cup total history in their opening clash against Sri Lanka by amassing 428 runs.

"We had pretty slow and inconsistent wickets back at home. It's been pretty challenging there" - Stand-in DC skipper David Warner during IPL 2023

David Warner, who led DC in Rishabh Pant's absence in the 2023 edition, complained about the sluggish wickets at the Arun Jaitley Stadium. DC finished ninth in the points table, missing out on the playoffs for the second year running. The franchise only won two home games in the entire season.

"Great win of course but I really liked the intent today after losing the toss. I also think playing on a nice wicket helps a lot. We had pretty slow and inconsistent wickets back at home. It's been pretty challenging there," Warner had said after DC's 15-run win over the Punjab Kings away from home.

Will a change in home conditions improve the franchise's fortunes? Let us know what you think.