Sunil Gavaskar Blasts Cricket South Africa After Rain Cancels IND vs SA 1st T20I, Says 'They Don't Have As Much Money As BCCI But...'

The 1st T20I between India and South Africa could not take place due to rain in Durban. Gavasakar says that Cricket South Africa did no prepare well for the rains.

Sunil Gavaskar. (Image: ANI/X)

India batting legend Sunil Gavaskar was not very happy when they the first T20I between India and South Africa was washed out in Kingsmead, Durban on Sunday evening. Not even a single ball was bowled in the match as the toss also did not take place. The teams kept on waiting in the dressing room but the relentless rain did not stop. 

Gavaskar, who is in the Star Sports commentary panel, said that Cricket South Africa (CSA) should have prepared better for the series. He saw a lack of required resources to get the match ready in time if rain had stopped. In a scathing attack on CSA, Gavaskar said that he agrees they do not have as much money as Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) but they still have proficient funds to purchase good ground covers. 

The visuals showed that the Kingsmead groundsmen had covered just the pitch and the area 30-yard area on one side of the wicket. MCC's Law 10.2 which focuses on the covering of the pitch, states that: 

MATCH ABANDONED!

Sadly, today's KFC T20i game against India has been called off. This is due to persistent rain in Durban __

See you in Gqeberha! #SAvIND pic.twitter.com/3S68vgn3Ul

— Proteas Men (@ProteasMenCSA) December 10, 2023

"During the match: Unless determined otherwise before the toss, on each night of the match and in inclement weather at any time during the match

10.2.1 the whole pitch and a minimum of 4 ft/1.22 m beyond it at each end shall be covered.

10.2.2 the bowlers’ run-ups, where possible, shall be covered.

In Laws, it is not mentioned whether the groundsman must cover the whole ground during the rain."

It is not mentioned clearly that all the areas should be covered in the lawbooks. However, the laws do say that the groundsman should cover as many areas as possible if required. 

For example, Sri Lanka Cricket has a rule in place thanks to which the whole ground gets covered during rains. It does take time to put covers and then take them off. But when the whole ground is covered, there are no wet patches after the rain and the games resumes very quickly once the rain comes to a halt.

In Sri Lanka, the grounds do not have the able system in place to ready the ground for the match again once the rain stops. In India, Karnataka Cricket Association has installed a subair system which dries the ground very quickly.