Sponsored by
England plunged into further gloom
ENGLAND were left questioning the wisdom of the regulations after bad light secured a controversial 16-run victory for India in the third one-day international.
The tourists looked well placed to pressurise India as they chased England's total of 240 in a match bizarrely only reduced to 49 overs despite a 45-minute delay for early morning mist.
But with both sides having witnessed how quickly the light fades in Kanpur, they knew the Duckworth-Lewis method for deciding interrupted matches would be required.
That allowed India to pace their run chase and ensure they were ahead of the required total, leaving England wondering what might have been after reducing India to 198-5 after 40 overs when play was called off at 4.45pm.
The finish was all the more galling because there are four newly-installed lights at Green Park, but both sides agreed they should not be used beforehand because they had not been tested in a major match.
England approached ICC match referee Roshan Mahanama before the start of play to register their concerns about only reducing the match to 49 overs and the lunch interval by 15 minutes.
Yesterday's controversy follows a similarly contentious finish to their one-day international against New Zealand at Edgbaston last summer, which was called off through bad light only one over before it constituted a game when regulations prevented the officials from shortening the lunch break.
"We knew the light could be an issue so we were trying to make sure we could get a game in this morning," said England coach Peter Moores. "The umpires made their call and we can make recommendations afterwards.
"The key for me is that we try to make sure it doesn't happen again. A lot of people have come to watch the game and you've got television so we have to do everything we possibly can to get the game in."
The contentious finale overshadowed a potentially tight finish with England pressing hard for victory after comprehensive defeats in Rajkot and Indore.
Dismissed for an under-par total despite re-jigging their batting order, England responded with an aggressive bowling display from Andrew Flintoff which almost unsettled India enough to secure an unexpected victory.
Flintoff claimed a wicket in the first over of each of his three spells, using his pace to try to unsettle India's top order and, when that did not work, he was happy to wander down the wicket and engage in a war of words.
Essex's Ravi Bopara had been given a chance to open alongside Ian Bell for the first time. He seized his chance and contributed to a 79-run opening stand, England's best of the series. But after being well placed on 80-1 after 15 overs, England again struggled against India's spinners with four wickets falling in 10 overs.
Email to a friend
Print this page- Three-inch blanket of snow heading our way today
- Alan Shearer in list of favourites for Leeds and England jobs: Latest odds
- Barnsley’s Keith Hill invokes Fawlty Towers over link with Leeds job
- McCormack feels United search can be narrowed down
- Redfearn throws down gauntlet as queue builds at Elland Road
Looking for...
Featured advertisers
Jobs
Search for a job
Motors
Search for a car
Property
Search for a house
Weather for Yorkshire
Saturday 11 February 2012
Today
Sunny spells
Temperature: -2 C to 0 C
Wind Speed: 8 mph
Wind direction: South
Tomorrow
Cloudy
Temperature: 2 C to 5 C
Wind Speed: 8 mph
Wind direction: North west
