The last time New Zealand played in Hyderabad, in 2010, Brendon McCullum hit a rocking double century and Harbhajan Singh called the pitch 'a highway'. The match ended in a tame draw.
So, YL Chandrasekar, curator at the Rajiv Gandhi stadium, was naturally wary when the media approached him on Tuesday to check on how the wicket for the first Test will behave.
"You guys will put me in trouble. I can only tell this much," he said.
However, he predicted that the pitch would help spinners.
"We have added red soil to the usual black soil to help give the wicket some turn," he said.
"It should start turning after the second day." According to pitch experts, black soil binds strongly while red soil disintegrates quickly, which helps spin.
"What it (the addition of red soil) promises is good bounce and it cracks pretty early," added Chandrasekhar.
Suresh Raina bowled in the nets for a long time and presumably, MS Dhoni saw something in the wicket to allow his batsman, trying to make a Test comeback, to bowl at length.
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