This pitch is trash. Huge fail by the waca staff
vs England 2010, India 2012 and England 2013 have been the only tests at the WACA since the reconfiguration in 2002 which have 'moderately' resembled the fast, bouncy nature of those from the '80s and '90s. I have read in the past that the type of soil the groundsmen use for the pitch has been different since the WACA ground was reconfigured after 2001/02 season (when the Perth AFL teams moved to Subiaco, and the long horizontal boundaries were shortened and seating capacity decreased)
Yes, I know that pre 1998/99 season - when the Australian international season was rescheduled so that the tests were played first before the ODIs started after the New Year's test at the SCG - the WACA test was usually played in late January/early February, which by then the heat during Perth's summer helped harden the pitch. Even since then, the WACA test was usually played a few days before Christmas in mid-December.
This pitch is bog ordinary, but the worst WACA pitches I've seen would be the ones dished out vs South Africa in 2005 (where they comfortably batted out 123 overs for a draw), 2008 (where they chased down 414 on a pitch that was already flat but had significantly flattened when they batted last) and 2012 (Ponting's last test).
In saying that though, it will be a shame when international cricket in Perth is moved to the new 55k seat Burswood Stadium (apparently as early as the 2017/18 Ashes test, which means this test is the 2nd last to be played at the WACA before that fixture) and excluding the Ashes tests, I can see matches there being high-scoring draws on drop-in pitches held in front of crowds less than 50% capacity. Oh, happy days!
