India vs New Zealand 2nd ODI begins in controversy after Pune pitch curator gets suspended

Pune: The second one-day international between India and New Zealand began in controversy on Wednesday when MCA stadium pitch curator Pandurang Salgaonkar was suspended on possible corruption charges.

Earlier in the day, India Today, a national TV news channel, played tapes from a sting operation which showed Salgaonkar allowing access to the match wicket to journalists posing as bookies.

ICC rules prevent any non-player or official pitch access to the wicket ahead of the match. The ICC had no immediate comment.

Maharashtra Cricket Association (MCA) president Abhay Apte released a statement following this incident, saying he had suspended Salgaonkar.

"(We) have zero tolerance on such subjects, so MCA will be making a detailed inquiry on what has happened or what has appeared on television," Apte said.

New Zealand won the toss and decided to bat. New Zealand, which won the first ODI in Mumbai by six wickets to lead the three-match series 1-0, named an unchanged side.

After winning nine of its last 11 ODIs, India is in an unfamiliar position, needing to come from behind to salvage the series.

Left-arm spinner Axar Patel was drafted into the starting side for India ahead of leg-spinner Kuldeep Yadav.

Teams:

India: Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli (captain), Dinesh Karthik, Kedar Jadhav, M.S. Dhoni, Hardik Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Axar Patel, Jasprit Bumrah, Yuzvendra Chahal.

New Zealand: Martin Guptill,Colin Munro, Kane Williamson (captain), Ross Taylor, Tom Latham, Henry Nicholls, Colin de Grandhomme, Mitchell Santner, Adam Milne, Tim Southee, Trent Boult.