The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is mulling hosting a Day-Night Test against Sri Lanka in February-March. The Lankans are scheduled to tour India for a two-match Test series and a three-match T20I series from February 25 to March 18. The two Tests are scheduled to take place in Bangalore and Mohali.
But the Indian board has shown reluctance to host the Day-Night affair at the PCA Stadium in Mohali due to the presence of dew. Hence, the only option that remains for them is the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium. The world’s richest cricket board is also keeping track for the situation in the country in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Having the pink ball Test in Mohali is difficult since dew is expected to play a big role. However, BCCI is still monitoring the Covid-19 situation in the country. A final call to tweak the schedule will be taken soon,” a BCCI source was quoted as saying in The Times of India (TOI).
Back in November 2019, India hosted their maiden Day-Night Test against Bangladesh, captained by Mominul Haque Showrabh. India won the game comfortably in a tad over two days. The match also happened to be the last instance when former Indian skipper Virat Kohli scored a century in the international level.
Lucknow likely to miss out in India Sri Lanka T20Is
Mohali, Dharamsala and Lucknow are set to host the three T20Is on Sunday, March 13, Tuesday, March 15 and Friday, March 18. But if reports are to be believed, the Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium in Lucknow may not get to host a T20I in the upcoming series.
In another development, Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) has requested the BCCI to host the T20I series first before moving on to the Test matches as the players would find it easy to move from one bio-secure bubble to the other.
As of now, the Men in Blue are gearing up for their three-match ODI series and three-match T20I series against Kieron Pollard’s West Indies from February 6 onwards. The matches will take place at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad and the Eden Gardens in Kolkata. India recently lost the ODI and Test series in South Africa.
