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    <title>Aaj TV English News - Sports</title>
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    <copyright>Copyright 2026</copyright>
    <pubDate>Mon, 06 Apr 2026 09:09:54 +0500</pubDate>
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      <title>Pakistan cricket board hires Australian curator to improve pitches</title>
      <link>https://english.aaj.tv/news/330369935/pakistan-cricket-board-hires-australian-curator-to-improve-pitches</link>
      <description>&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Pakistan’s cricket board said Monday it had hired Australian pitch curator Tony Hemming to improve playing surfaces in the country after facing staunch criticism in back-to-back Test matches.&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Pakistan is due to host the International Cricket Council’s Champions Trophy from February 19 to March 9 next year.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;“Hemming has been appointed as the new head curator on a two-year contract to prepare pitches for the upcoming five Tests in the home season,” the board said in a statement.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Hemming will oversee pitch preparations ahead of two Tests against Bangladesh in Rawalpindi from August 21 and in Karachi from August 30.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;He will also help prepare for three Tests against England in October.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Pakistan’s Rawalpindi stadium was awarded below-average ratings following high-scoring Tests against Australia in 2022 and England in 2021.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Australian skipper Pat Cummins said the pitch “did not provide a fair contest” while renowned batter Steve Smith slammed it as “benign”.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Hemming has more than four decades of experience and previously served as the ICC’s head curator for academies.&lt;/p&gt;
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      <content:encoded xmlns="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/"><![CDATA[<p><strong>Pakistan’s cricket board said Monday it had hired Australian pitch curator Tony Hemming to improve playing surfaces in the country after facing staunch criticism in back-to-back Test matches.</strong></p>
<p>Pakistan is due to host the International Cricket Council’s Champions Trophy from February 19 to March 9 next year.</p>
<p>“Hemming has been appointed as the new head curator on a two-year contract to prepare pitches for the upcoming five Tests in the home season,” the board said in a statement.</p>
<p>Hemming will oversee pitch preparations ahead of two Tests against Bangladesh in Rawalpindi from August 21 and in Karachi from August 30.</p>
<p>He will also help prepare for three Tests against England in October.</p>
<p>Pakistan’s Rawalpindi stadium was awarded below-average ratings following high-scoring Tests against Australia in 2022 and England in 2021.</p>
<p>Australian skipper Pat Cummins said the pitch “did not provide a fair contest” while renowned batter Steve Smith slammed it as “benign”.</p>
<p>Hemming has more than four decades of experience and previously served as the ICC’s head curator for academies.</p>
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      <category>Sports</category>
      <guid>https://english.aaj.tv/news/330369935</guid>
      <pubDate>Mon, 15 Jul 2024 20:03:08 +0500</pubDate>
      <author>none@none.com (AFP)</author>
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        <media:title>Pakistan’s Mohammad Nawaz plays a shot during the fourth day of the second cricket Test match between Pakistan and England at the Multan Cricket Stadium in Multan on December 12, 2022. AFP
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        <media:title>Photo via PCB
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