Team India overcame Australia in the second T20I in Nagpur on Friday to bring themselves level at 1-1 in the three-match series. While there was a lot of excitement amidst a jam-packed Vidarbha Stadium in Nagpur, the match originally scheduled to begin at 7 PM got started at 9:30 PM.
Owing to the delay, the contest was reduced to just 8 overs per side, but why was such a step taken by the umpires even though there was no rain on matchday in Nagpur?
Why IND vs AUS was reduced to just 8 overs per side despite no rain?
Nagpur has been experiencing rains in the days preceding the matchday and thus the outfield was already wet by the time toss was scheduled to take place at 6:30 PM. The toss was first delayed at 7 PM, but upon inspection, umpires Umpires Nitin Menon and K N Anantha Padmanabhan decided it would be better to wait.
READ| IND vs AUS: Team India level Pakistan's incredible world record for most T20I wins in calendar year
The next inspection was done at 8 PM, and still the outfield was wet, and so the groundsmen kept trying to make the surface playable.
The umpires told Murali Karthik that the area of concern at wide mid-on is soft and moving under the foot and not safe for the players. They were waiting for that. It had not dried as quickly as expected. They were still hopeful the ground staff could dry it up in time. The umpires were concerned about the safety of the players only.
Later on, upon another inspection at 8:45, the umpires finally gave the green light for play to kick start, and because of the delay in toss due to the outfield, the match had to be reduced to eight overs per side.
READ| On This Day: MS Dhoni led Team India won inaugural T20 World Cup in 2007, watch
Rohit Sharma won the toss and chose to bowl, after which India restricted Australia to a total of 90/5, and chased down the required target with four balls to spare. The 'Hitman' himself was unbeaten at 46, while Axar Patel chipped in with two crucial wickets to help the Men in Blue triumph by six wickets.
