Rain delays Chennai-Lahore CLT20 tie

Bangalore, Sep 25 (IANS) A heavy downpour Thursday evening delayed the start of the Champions League Twenty20 Group A match between Chennai Super Kings and Lahore Lions at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium here.

"Holding toss is delayed beyond 7:30 p.m. as drizzle turned into heavy rain. We cannot say when we can toss as no let-up in the rain," a Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA) official told IANS.

With the weathermen forecasting moderate to heavy rain in the city during this week due to a depression in the Bay of Bengal and the active south-west monsoon in the retreating phase, prospects of holding the match appeared dim.

"Though it was cloudy since late afternoon and there were spells of drizzle, we did not expect it to turn into a torrent, flooding the entire ground with rain water," the official lamented.

Covering the pitch and about 30 yards of the playing area around it with synthetic material did not help in preventing the ground getting water-logged.

About 30 minutes before the toss could be held, players of both teams were seen practicing batting, bowling and catching near the pavilion and western stand with their coaches and support staff.

Just as the covers were being removed for the umpires to inspect the pitch and holding the toss to commence the match at 8 p.m., the drizzle turned into moderate rain, forcing the players to stop practicing and return to the pavilion while the ground staff rushed into the middle to roll out the covers.

Being a working day and the 10-day Dussehra festival beginning Thursday, only about 3,000 die-hard fans were seen rushing into the eastern stands for cover where tickets are priced the lowest.

In the absence of the host team Royal Challengers Bangalore from the tournament and other domestic teams that play in the popular Indian Premier League (IPL) during summer every year, CLT20 failed to draw frenzied fans by droves.