JOIN US“Match timings can’t be changed after the start of the tournament as the satellite timings have already been booked at least three weeks in advance. So a change cannot be effected now, and also the procedure, especially done it from Asia, is very costly,” the official said.
Bangladesh skipper Shakib-al-Hasan’s proposal on Monday to start the remaining games earlier had sparked the talk.
“It was almost impossible to grip the ball as the dew started at 6:00 pm and we had four spinners in our team. If the conditions remain like this, even 300 won't be difficult to chase. I even discussed the matter with Kumar Sangakkara, who agreed.
We might speak to the officials and try to change the timing of the games to a 12:00 noon start,” Shakib had said after Sri Lanka chased a tricky target of 261 comfortably.
Sangakkara too admitted that dew could be a very significant factor in the tournament. “Of course, if the start time changes, it would make for better cricket. But I guess you take the good with the bad. You do feel sorry for the fielding side the dew kicked in the evening,” he said.
Indian skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni had also suggested an early start to the matches to check the influence of dew. “It would be good if we can start the match at 11:00 am, so that it gets over by 8:30 pm or 9:00 pm, at least an hour earlier than what it is now. That’s the time it really gets wet, but we have to play at whatever timings are given to us,” he said.
The recent one-day series between Bangladesh and Zimbabwe had offered ample evidence of the effect of dew as the chasing team won all the five matches in that series. Now with the officials turning down the idea of an early start, another set of uninspiring matches seems to be the order of this tri-series as well.