A bizarre scene was witnessed in Dharamsala on Sunday (October 22) as haze halted play during the 21st match of the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup between India and New Zealand.
Visibility became an issue for the players as a thick cover of fog covered the picturesque stadium. The hosts were 100 for 2 in 15.4 overs when the umpires decided to take the two sets of players off the field.
On-air commentators explained that the visibility was so low that they were not being able to see the other side of the stadium. Television visuals showed that the floodlights were covered in haze.
Fortunately, the conditions improved and the players returned to the field after a brief interruption.
Coming to the match, India won the toss and opted and opted to bowl first. Riding on Mohammad Shami’s five-wicket haul, the home bundled out the Kiwis for 273 in 50 overs. Daryl Mitchell was the top scorer for New Zealand with 130 off 127 balls.
In reply, the Men in Blue got off to a blazing start as the duo of Rohit Sharma (46) and Shubman Gill (26) added 71 runs for the opening wicket. However, both of them got out in quick succession.
Virat Kohli and Shreyas Iyer were in the middle for India when the play resumed.
