Cardiff curator shown the door

The head curator of Swalec Stadium in Cardiff has been sacked less than a week before the Twenty20 international between Australia and England.

Keith Exton, who prepared the pitch for the opening Ashes Test in July, was shown the door by Glamorgan Cricket Club after a one-day clash with Hampshire was abandoned due to unfit conditions earlier this month when batsman Jimmy Adams was struck on the helmet from a seemingly innocuous length delivery by Michael Hogan.

Quick single: Cardiff pitch deemed too dangerous

Bupa Support Team Head Coach Darren Lehmann was critical of the wicket at the first Ashes Test - a different pitch to the one used when Hampshire's match was abandoned - after the tourists were beaten by 169 runs on a slow surface that failed to generate any pace.

Following an internal investigation it was announced on Thursday that Exton has left his position.

"The club would to thank Keith for his role in establishing the SSE SWALEC as a firm fixture in the international cricket calendar and particularly for his preparation of two Ashes Test pitches during his six-year tenure in Cardiff," the club said in a statement.

Chief executive Hugh Morris said: "On behalf of Glamorgan County Cricket Club I would like to thank Keith for the contribution he has made to the club and wish him well in his future endeavours."

Glamorgan had managed to bat out their 50 overs in the difficult conditions in the match on August 2, creeping their way to 9-152 on a surface that had turned sharply. 

But a turning pitch became dangerous in the second innings when Hampshire's Michael Carberry and then Jimmy Adams were struck on the helmet by lifting deliveries. 

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Hampshire's Michael Carberry is struck on the helmet // Getty Images

Adams was hit on the side of head having played forward to a length delivery from Australian quick Michael Hogan in the seventh over, prompting umpires Paul Baldwin and Neil Mallender to consult with skippers Jacques Rudolph and James Vince before calling off the match.

Glamorgan were docked two points for a poor pitch last summer too - with the deduction coming off their tally in this year's Royal London one-day cup.

In 2007, they were penalised eight points by the ECB after a Championship match in Swansea ended inside two days, with 21 wickets falling on the opening day.

Cases of matches being abandoned due to a dangerous pitch are rare, with the most famous incidence coming in Jamaica in 1998 when the Test between West Indies and England was called off after just 10.1 overs.

On Monday, August 31, Cardiff will hold a high-profile double-header, with both Australia and the Commonwealth Bank Southern Stars to do battle with England at the ground.

Channel 9 will continue their support of Women’s Cricket by telecasting the third T20 - also the final match of the Women's Ashes series - in HD on GEM at 9pm AEST, followed by the men's T20.