After persistent rain throughout the first session and a glimmer of hope emerging that play would begin in the second, the opening day of the three-match Test series between India and New Zealand was called off here at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium.
There were two 30-minute windows without rain in the post-lunch session that kept the handful of spectators excited, as the vaunted SubAir drainage system at the venue is purportedly capable of getting conditions fit for play within 15 to 20 minutes of rain relenting.
However, a light drizzle would return just as the ground staff got down to removing the covers and assessing conditions, forcing the officials to not take any chances. Minutes after the day’s play was officially called off – at 2:29 p.m. local time – a heavy downpour commenced.
Fans had started trickling in towards the end of the first session and found some solace on an otherwise damp day as local favourite Virat Kohli strutted across the ground to the indoor practice facilities, prompting a loud cheer that echoed through the largely empty stands.
Loud cheers went up at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium as Virat Kohli made his way across the ground. | Photo Credit: AP
As a harbinger of good times, chants of “RCB, RCB” accompanied the first signs of activity that suggested there could be a possibility of seeing some action as the ground staff rushed in to the sound of a conch shell going off.
However, that eventually sounded the knell for the day.
With rain forecast over the whole of the next week in the city, India may need an upgrade on that element–defying Kanpur performance against Bangladesh to produce a much-needed result.
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