NEW DELHI: Former Sri Lankan all-rounder Angela Matthews has hit out at England ODI skipper Harry Brook over his controversial comments about the Colombo surface.

After the second ODI between England and Sri Lanka, Brook criticized the wicket, saying it was “probably the worst pitch I have ever played on.” England, however, managed to pull off a five-wicket win, largely thanks to Joe Root’s brilliance on what he described as sprint-friendly conditions.

‘Worst pitch I’ve played’: Brook, Root lash out on Colombo wicket after England win

Double standard in judging pitches

Matthews highlighted the double standard in how pitches are judged. She pointed out that when Asian teams play overseas, wickets with grass, seam, and movement are praised as challenging or “sporty,” yet similar conditions in other regions are often criticized.

“So the big talk about bad wickets! Can someone explain to me the definition of a bad wicket? When Asian countries play overseas and when the wicket has lots of grass, movement and seam it’s a ‘sporty’ wicket,” he wrote on X.

Defining a truly bad wicket

He then explained her own definition of a truly bad wicket. She argued that turning tracks in the subcontinent are unfairly labeled as “terrible,” and that a pitch should only be called bad if it behaves dangerously, lifts sharply, or poses a real threat to batters.

“But in the subcontinent, when it turns it’s called terrible wickets? To me, bad wickets are ones that take off a good length and can harm the batters or are dangerous to play on!”