India v Bangladesh: Wet patches rule out play on Day 3 of Kanpur Test
The umpires called off play without a ball being bowled for the second day in a row due to wet patches on the field
Kanpur: No play was possible for the second consecutive day in the second Test between India and Bangladesh at the Green Park on Sunday, pushing the heavily weather-disrupted game towards a draw with two days left.
While it was a delayed start on the opening day, which saw Bangladesh finish on 107/3 after play had to be halted after only 35 overs were bowled because of rain, heavy overnight rain and drizzle in the morning washed out Saturday’s play on Day 2.
There was no rain on Sunday and 15,000-odd fans waited in bright sunshine for the match to resume. However, it didn’t happen even after three inspections by the umpires before the day’s play was called off without a ball being bowled. Umpires Chris Brown and Richard Kettleborough were not satisfied with the condition of the ground and called off play at 2 pm.
However, fans blamed the poor drainage system at the Green Park stadium for no play being possible for the second consecutive day of the Test. “It’s a very old stadium where even the routine facilities for fans are not available. The drainage system is almost broken and doesn’t function properly,” said a spectator.
The covers came off in the morning for the first inspection at 10 am. However, the umpires were not satisfied with quite a few wet patches, crucially on the bowler’s run-up. They called off the day’s play after the third inspection.
Unlike Chennai where the first Test was played last week – India won by 280 runs – security around the Kanpur hotel where the teams are staying is very tight, in view of the tense political situation in Bangladesh. Sitting in their rooms for the last two days, the Bangladesh players feel they aren’t allowed to go out of their rooms.
“In Chennai, I went all alone to visit a famous place. We were even allowed to order food from outside, but here things are different. We are not allowed to go outside our rooms,” a senior Bangladesh Cricket Board official said on the condition of anonymity on Sunday.
India won the first Test in Chennai by 280 runs.
