BP Daily Podcast

The state of the pitch will either favour the batsmen or the bowlers, and in Test matches (which last up to five days), the pitch can go from one extreme to the other during the course of the same match.

If a pitch is hard and even(no cracks, no rough areas) it will be better for the batters, because the bounce will be consistent and the ball will be less likely to move off the pitch. That said, there are a few examples where the pitch is so hard and fast that tall, fast bowlers can cause batsmen a lot of problems, mainly by bowling short (that is, landing the ball further from the batsmen) so that it reaches the batsman around the chest/neck area. Perth in Australia is probably the best example.

As a Test match wears on, the pitch is likely to deteriorate. Cracks might start to emerge; if a ball lands on one of these it's likely to behave unpredictably, either by turning sharply, keeping low or unexpectedly high. Moreover, fast bowlers take long run ups when they bowl, and so once they've released the ball, their momentum causes them to follow through onto the pitch, where their spikes (cleats) cause the pitch to rough up in certain areas. If a spin bowler (who will bowl around 55-60 mph and who relies on the ability to cause the ball to bounce and move laterally, rather than sheer pace) can land the ball in these areas, he will likely have a lot of success.

Different countries have different types of pitches, typically. England's are softer and more grass-covered at the start of the summer, getting better as the season wears on; the same is true in New Zealand. Pitches in Australia and the West Indies tend to be harder. Those in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka tend to be drier and dustier. And then different pitches within each country can behave differently too!

A Test match has only once been abandoned because the pitch was actually dangerous - West Indies v England in 1997. See here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bNV8LJX1Pms

P.S. The weather can also affect things. Essentially, the hotter and sunnier it is, the easier it tends to be to bat. If it's muggy and overcast, fast bowlers are more likely to be able to move the ball in the air.