Rain threatens Kochi one dayer

Heavy spells of rain in this port city of Kerala have cast a doubt over Tuesday's one dayer, the second in the series, between India and Australia.

It rained intermittently on Sunday. This morning, the groundsman infomed us that while efforts are on to dry up the pitch and the outfield, another spell or two of rain could put the match in jeopardy.

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A little before 10 am, the two umpires and Australian captain Adam Gilchrist did a walk-around, and judging by their expressions and frequent stops to point at areas of concern, they are not too optimistic that the ground will be in readiness.

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And shortly after their inspection, it began to rain again, halting the work of the groundsmen. At the time of writing this, it is raining in Kochi, and increasingly the indications are we could get a washed out game tomorrow.

An email advisory from Cricket Australia says the team has called off practice for today, thanks to the rain.

Gilchrist will take part in a pre-match press conference at 1 pm, IST, at the Taj Malabar Hotel, Kochi.