According to the International Cricket Council (ICC) assessment of the pitch at Ahmedabad for the World Cup 2023 final between India and Australia, the pitch was deemed “average.” The ICC recently updated its list of pitch and outfield ratings, covering eight World Cup matches across five venues in India. Notably, five matches involving the host team, India, received an overall average rating.

The World Cup final, which occurred on November 19, utilized the same pitch that hosted the India-Pakistan fixture five weeks prior. This decision was made based on the recommendation of the ICC’s pitch consultant, Andy Atkinson, and the track received an average rating for both games. Furthermore, the surface at Eden Gardens, which hosted the second semi-final between Australia and South Africa, was also rated as average, contributing to a total of five average ratings for Eden Gardens.

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In contrast, the surface at Mumbai’s Wankhede Stadium, where the first semi-final between India and New Zealand took place, received a rating of “good.” Despite initial concerns about the pitch being altered from a fresh surface to a used track before the match, fears of it being slow did not materialize. The match saw a total of 724 runs scored, including three centuries across both innings, with only one wicket falling to spin.

The ICC employs a six-tier rating system, ranging from “very good” to “unfit,” to evaluate pitches and outfields for all international games. In this case, the assessment categorized the Ahmedabad pitch as “average.”