Cricket World Cup: ICC are forced to defend hazardous Dharamshala outfield amid safety concerns… and England will have to tread carefully when they face Bangladesh

• Mujeeb Ur Rahman of Afghanistan jammed his knee, raising safety concerns
• England considering potential team changes due to the conditions in India

The ICC have been forced to defend Dharamshala’s sandy outfield as England prepare for Tuesday’s crucial World Cup match against Bangladesh.

Jos Butler’s team will go into the game not only in need of a victory after Thursday’s hammering by New Zealand, but armed with a warning from their former batsman Jonathan Trott about the shambolic state of the surface.

Trott, who won 68 ODI caps for England, is in India as coach of Afghanistan, and looked on in dismay as one of his players – Mujeeb Ur Rahman – dangerously jammed his knee in the turf during his side’s defeat by the Bangladeshis here on Saturday.

Mujeeb escaped unhurt, but the incident recalled England fast bowler Simon Jones’s horrific career-ending injury at Brisbane’s Gabba in the 2002-03 Ashes. 

A stroll across Dharamshala’s outfield was enough to reveal the extent of the damage after heavy rain and a fungal infestation persuaded the local authorities to mitigate both by using sand.

Mujeeb Ur Rahman of Afghanistan dangerously jammed his knee in the turf during his side’s defeat by Bangladesg

England, who have decided to grin and bear it, are primed to keep an eye on the worst-affected areas, with Jonny Bairstow admitting they would have to ‘box a bit clever’ to avoid injury.

Astonishingly, the outfield was rated ‘average’ by the ICC after Saturday’s match, while match referee Javagal Srinath – the former Indian fast bowler – and the ICC’s independent pitch consultant Andy Atkinson were said to be ‘comfortable with the conditions’ after an inspection yesterday.

But Mail Sport understands that Andy Pycroft, who refereed the Afghanistan-Bangladesh game, had been prepared to call the match off if a serious injury had occurred.

It goes without saying that there is no appetite among the ICC, the Board of Control for Cricket in India or the local Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association to query Dharmashala’s suitability – especially with the venue set to host three more group games after this one, including India’s game against New Zealand on October 22.

Bairstow, who is barely five months into his return from a serious leg fracture, said: ‘The last thing you want is two guys going off with knee injuries or something. It can contribute to shoulders as well, if you’re diving and your elbows get stuck in the ground.

‘It’s one of those where it will be very difficult to hold someone back if they see a ball and they try to stop it – it’s a natural reaction to go for it. It might just be a case of boxing a bit clever.

‘It’s like a pitch being different from one venue to another – you’ve just got to adapt to it. Touch wood we don’t have any major incidents.’

Famously, England suffered a Test abandonment because of a sandy outfield – at Antigua’s North Sound in February 2009, when Andrew Strauss and Alastair Cook faced only 10 balls between them before the game was called off, and eventually shifted to the old Recreation Ground in St John’s.

Afghanistan’s Mujeeb ur Rahman is bowled by Bangladesh’s Mehidy Hasan Miraz

Jos Buttler’s England team will also be worried about the potential dangerous state of the surface

The England team practiced on Sunday ahead of their game against Bangladesh on Tuesday

And conditions may affect selection against Bangladesh. Injury-prone fast bowler Mark Wood could be given the game off, while both Reece Topley and Gus Atkinson looked sharp in the nets.

And if there were any lingering hopes that Ben Stokes might feature after he missed the New Zealand game with hip trouble, they have been ended by the conditions. Stokes did bat for half on hour at training, but he has not shaken off his stiffness.

The disquiet about the outfield threatened to overshadow a game that could prove trickier than England might have expected a few days ago. 

While they are still smarting from their nine-wicket thumping by New Zealand, Bangladesh were boosted by a six-wicket win over the Afghans – and enjoy the advantage of having sampled the local conditions.

England are also trying to bed in a new opening alliance, with Dawid Malan taking the injured Jason Roy’s place as Bairstow’s partner. Malan’s 24-ball 14 against New Zealand represented a sticky start, and Bairstow is adjusting to the new reality.

England are also trying a new opening alliance, with Dawid Malan taking the injured Jason Roy’s place as Bairstow’s partner in their Cricket World Cup campaign

‘I think naturally with that change it does have an impact,’ he said. ‘My partnership with Jason was one we very much enjoyed.

‘I’ve played with Dawid for a number of years. There’s a change in the way he plays, compared with Jason. That’s not to say it’s a bad thing at all, but naturally it will take a little bit of time to bed in.’

If Bairstow can produce one of his specials in his 100th ODI, questions about sand, fungal infestations and Malan will fade. But it is only eight years, on a grim evening in Adelaide, since Bangladesh ruined an England World Cup campaign. Buttler’s team will be on red alert, in more ways than one.

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