NEW DELHI: Till 10 am on Tuesday morning, getting in a full ODI at the Ferozeshah Kotla ground seemed a distant thought. Incessant rain for four days leading into the game and another early morning drizzle had posed a great challenge for the ground staff.
Yet, DDCA chief curator Ankit Datta along with BCCI curator Sunil Chauhan pulled off a miracle of sorts with just two hours of sunshine to get the game started after just a 45-minute delay. No overs were lost.
The 34-year-old Datta has been in charge of the Kotla square for seven years now and has fought hard to change the nature of the pitch, which has historically played low and slow. But this had to be his biggest challenge. The off-season work on the outfield's drainage system paid dividends on Tuesday.
The match was a low-scoring one but it had more to do with the pitch being damp because of being under covers for four days. By the end of the match, the ball started coming on to the bat better and Anrich Nortje's deliveries started going through at good pace with great carry.
