Rains forced abandonment of the third one-dayer between India and South Africa without a ball being bowled, ruining what promised to be high-voltage clash between two determined opponents seeking to regain the lead in the five-match series.
The washout was largely expected with heavy rain lashing the city intermittently since last morning under the influence of a depression in the Bay of Bengal.
The umpires carried out two inspections at the M.A. Chidambaram Stadium before deciding to call off the day-night encounter, much to the disappointment of the nearly 20,000 fans who braved the rains in the hope of some play.
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The abandonment is again bound to raise questions on the BCCI's rotational policy for allotment of venues as the city generally receives rainfall around this time of the year.
A similar outcome was seen in 2003 when a one-dayer between India and New Zealand was rained off and again last year when the last day's play in the second Test against Australia had to be abandoned.
The series is locked 1-1 and with just two matches to go, it would now be rendered into a much tighter contest, a fact acknowledged by both the captains.
The teams will now proceed to Kolkata for the fourth match scheduled for November 25.
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It will also be a disappointing day for Sachin Tendulkar, who was on the verge of creating a world record by eclipsing Wasim Akram's feat of 356 one-day international appearances.
PTI
