Strong winds, rain leave Feroz Shah Kotla in a mess

Duststorm and heavy rain onWednesday morningleft theKotla ground soft and soggy which was to host IPL match between Delhi and Hyderabad.

The Ferozeshah Kotla, which will host Thursday's Indian Premier League match between Delhi and Hyderabad resembled a mini pool with duststorm and heavy rain lashing the capital Wednesday morning.

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The damage caused by the inclement weather led to the cancellation of the scheduled practise sessions of the two teams in the evening.

The Hyderabad team, who lost seven of their nine matches, were informed that neither the outside practise ground nor the main ground were fit for training.

Delhi were expected to arrive in the afternoon and were unlikely to train in view of the weather.

The water-logged practice ground was slushy and the main Kotla ground soft and soggy.

"We are more focussed on ensuring the ground is fit for Thursday's match and for that we need all the time," the groundsman said.

The ground staff had pressed a super sopper into service, but with the dis-functional drainage system, it will take a lot of time and effort to make the ground ready for the match to start on time.

The signages, poles and banners were all scattered as strong wind and rain blew away everything in sight.