Fog Forces Drastic Reduction in Opening Day's Play
Heavy fog played spoilsport on the opening day of the Cooch Behar Trophy Under-19 pool league match in Bareilly on Tuesday. The dense blanket, which reduced visibility to almost zero, permitted only a single hour of cricket at the SRMS cricket ground. The visiting Bengal team managed to reach a score of 89 for the loss of 3 wickets before bad light ultimately forced an early end to proceedings.
Weather Woes and Match Logistics
The Indian Meteorological Department's warning of dense fog in 27 districts, including Bareilly, proved accurate. The city woke up to severely impaired visibility on Tuesday morning, making any start impossible. After multiple inspections, the officials finally managed to conduct the toss at 2:30 PM, with play commencing at 3:00 PM. However, the reprieve was short-lived, as play was halted about 35 minutes before the scheduled close due to deteriorating light.
Uttar Pradesh captain won the toss and elected to field first. Bengal's innings saw a mixed start. Opener Atmaja Mondal was dismissed early for 10 runs by pacer Yash Panwar. Captain Aditya Roy held firm at one end, building a 36-run partnership for the second wicket with Chandrahas Das. Das looked aggressive, scoring 27 off just 25 balls with five boundaries, before falling to Ravi Saini, caught by Anmol Noushran.
Ashutosh Kumar's dismissal was unfortunate, as he was run out for 9. When stumps were drawn prematurely, skipper Aditya Roy remained not out on a steady 35, with Abhipray Biswas accompanying him on 4. For the UP bowling attack, Yash Panwar and Ravi Saini claimed one wicket each.
Manager's Take on the Challenging Conditions
Speaking to the Times of India, Uttar Pradesh team manager Binay Kumar expressed his disappointment over the lost time. "Due to fog almost the first day's game was lost," Kumar stated. He added that the situation now intensifies the competition, as "both teams will try to obtain a first innings lead" with significantly less time available in the match.
The truncated first day sets the stage for a compressed and potentially intense battle over the remaining days. Both teams will need to adapt quickly and play aggressively to force a result after the significant loss of time to the weather. All eyes will now be on the skies and the players' ability to make up for lost opportunities.
