How different is the IPL turning out to be for curators? Are they getting their due in this new, more challenging format of cricket?
The concept of Twenty20 may be new but the shoddy and pathetic treatment that curators and ground staff are getting has been the same as ever, or even worse. The public is jumping up and down over Shah Rukh Khan and the Bollywood glamour. But no one, including the cricket administrators, is sparing a thought for the curators who actually prepare the 22-yard strip and ensure the fun that follows.

Why is the situation so bad for the curators?
It’s the mindset of the cricket officials and the spectators. Whenever there’s a hugely successful high-scoring match, be it a Test, a One-day or a Twenty20, people go ga-ga over the batsmen, but no one talks about the good job done by the curator. Take the recent IPL match between Mumbai and Chennai. Everybody was crazy over Sanath Jayasuriya’s century, but nobody was concerned for the curator Sudhir Naik. It’s only when there’s a low-scoring match that the curator is picked out for special treatment by critics. When a match is a hit, hail the players, and when a match goes wrong, the curator is in the dock — that’s the policy here. When a batsman hits six sixes, he is rewarded with Rs 1 crore. But when Dhoni gives a measly Rs 10,000 reward to a curator, no one looks at the disparity. Instead, it’s seen as a philanthropic act.

What should a curator keep in mind when it comes to preparing pitches for Twenty20?
In Twenty20, pitches have got to be firm and hard. Tournaments like the IPL are batsmen-friendly where run-scoring is most important. So, the curator has to ensure that the ball should come on to the bat properly, and that’s why the need for a firm pitch.

The Eden Gardens pitch has faced a lot of flak for its slowness and poor bounce in IPL matches. What went wrong?
Many of the people associated with the pitch preparation at the Edens don’t know the fundamentals of a pitch. In the IPL matches here, the ball is definitely coming slowly on to the bat. To rule the 22-yard strip, you have to know your stuff well. But look at the cricket officials involved with the pitch preparation here, they have a little knowledge of the pitch preparation.