In cricket, Player of the Match awards (then Man of the Match) are usually awarded for the players who produce exceptional performances or leave huge impact on the game. However, there have some instances where the Player of the Match award to groundsmen, fielders or pitch curator.
In December 2000, one such event unfolded when South Africa’s Chris Scott became the first and only pitch curator to ever win the 'Player of the Match' honour in international cricket.
The third and final match of the Test series between South Africa and New Zealand at Wanderers Stadium was marred by heavy rain, with Day 1 and Day 4 completely washed out. The series was already won by the hosts South Africa, having won first two encounters of the series. However, the third Test seemed destined to be a total washout, but Scott, the head curator, along with his team, had other plans.
Defying the odds and battling incessant rain, Scott's team worked day and night tirelessly to ensure that the match could continue. After salvaging play on the second day, their monumental task continued as they drained waterlogged pitches and outfields once again for the final day of play. Remarkably, they achieved this despite the limited technology available at the time. Unlike today's advanced systems, such as the sub-air technology at Bengaluru’s M Chinnaswamy Stadium, which can dry outfields quickly, Scott and his team had to rely on more manual and time-consuming methods.
Nowadays, drying a pitch or outfield in at least half-n-hour may look like a common phenomenon, after all the grounds today have the technology to in nearly less than half an hour if required. But in the 2000s, drying a pitch meant roaming over it with air blowers if your board was rich and if not having to use hair dryers and pedestal fans to somehow get it dry. In fact in important matches, even helicopters have been deployed to somehow blow the water away. So, drying a pitch in less than three hours after a day's non-stop rain was nothing short of a rain, it was nothing short of a miracle and the magician to make all this happen was Chris Scott, the pitch curator.
In recognition of their extraordinary efforts, Chris Scott and his groundsmen were awarded the Man of the Match—a historic decision by the match officials in international cricket for their immense efforts to conduct this match despite it being a dead rubber. While the players slogged through two days of play, it was the groundsman's unseen work that allowed the match to even happen.
Scott's achievements didn’t end there. He was also responsible for preparing the pitch for the one of the most high scoring ODI clashes between South Africa and Australia, where Proteas chased down a 434-run target, cementing his legacy as one of the most respected curators in cricket.
Chris Scott’s story is a testament to the behind-the-scenes heroes of the sport, and his Man of the Match honor remains a singular and historic moment in cricket history.
