Groundsmen cover their pitch due to rain before the start of 1st T20 match between India and Sri Lanka at Barsapara Cricket Stadium in Guwahati, Sunday
Rain and wet patches on the surface forced umpires to call off the first T20I match of the three-game series between India and Sri Lanka at the Barsapara Stadium in Guwahati on January 5 (Sunday). The second T20I will be played on January 7 at the Holkar Stadium in Indore.
Earlier in the day, Indian skipper Virat Kohli won the toss and opted to bowl first against Sri Lanka.
"We're gonna bowl first. We haven't played here in a while. The last time we played here, we chased well. The game we played prior to that against Australia, they chased well too. The track does play differently in the second half as compared to the first part. It's a good thing actually, there isn't too much of a difference in conditions, except that the track settles down better later on with the wet ball," said Kohli after winning the toss as India rested Yuzvendra Chahal and Ravindra Jadeja to bring in Kuldeep Yadav and Washinton Sundar owing to the presence of left-handed batters in Sri Lankan batting lineup.
Shortly after the toss, it began drizzling in Guwahati and got heavier with time forcing the groundsmen to cover up the track.
However, when the rain had halted for a while and the covers were taken off, wet patches were seen on the track implying that water had seeped onto the track. Skipper Kohli was left quite unhappy when he had come out to inspect the track during the pitch inspection by the umpires. The patches refused to budge and hence the groundsmen were out with hairdryers and a steam iron was also used.
The second game will be on January 7 in Indore and the final tie will be hosted in Pune on January 10.
