It was a Saturday of rains here at the Gabba. And it came in all types: drizzle, feathery, downpour and pitter-patter. The weather’s liquid sense of wicked humour was on full view as the wet spell would pause for a while and just as the umbrellas were folded, the clouds would burst forth again.
This was tease and torment at its worst and it was more than enough to largely smother the third Test’s opening day’s play. A mere 13.2 overs were bowled, and that too was split by a rain break. Stepping in level at 1-1 in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy series, Australia scored 28 for no loss with openers Usman Khawaja and Nathan McSweeney at the crease.
The morning dawned with yellow streaks and dark clouds. Rohit Sharma sought his clues from the brooding skies and on winning the toss, elected to field. India effected two changes with Ravindra Jadeja and Akash Deep replacing R. Ashwin and Harshit Rana. Soon it was time for Jasprit Bumrah to steam in as Khawaja was all eyes and a waiting bat.
From the other end, Mohammed Siraj bowled a touch short and wide and Khawaja pulled with panache. McSweeney, though, preferred to dig in. When Bumrah strayed down the leg, Khawaja was ready with his flick. The crowd was settling in, applauding runs, booing Siraj and just as the day seemed to be warming up, the rains moved in. Australia 19 for zero, Rohit watching the skies, having a banana and soon the sun was out.
Virat Kohli had an animated chat with his teammates, Rohit and the rest listened, and on resumption, Siraj seemed to be bowling a tighter line. Akash too probed on and around off-stump and McSweeney dallied once on the drive and then retreated into his shell. But the weather turned whimsical, a downpour ensued, the players ran to the dressing room and an early lunch was taken.
The fans in the open parts of the stands dished out a muted Mexican wave and then huddled under the roof. Commentators scouted for their caffeine fix. Legends like Sunil Gavaskar, Allan Border and Ian Botham exchanged notes. Most had one eye on the skies and the other on the ground. For the fans, especially the Indians clad in blue, it was all about peering at the pavilion, trying to figure out if their sporting heroes were still there.
At 4.06 p.m., local time, umpires Richard Illingworth and Richard Kettleborough stepped out and met the curator and groundstaff on the sidelines. And at 4.14 p.m., play was called off for the remainder of the day. The second day will commence half an hour earlier at 9.50 a.m. (5.20 a.m. IST) but there is forecast for rains over the next few days.