Persistent rain again prevented play on Day 2 of the second Test in Kapur. Morning showers meant that the Green Park stadium stayed under covers, with not a single ball bowled on the second day. The groundsmen tried hard to get the ground ready, but the persistent drizzle made things worse for them.
Earlier, the rain played a big role on the first day of the second match between India and Bangladesh, as showers and bad light in Kanpur led to only 35 overs being played. The stage is set for a very interesting Test going forward if weather doesn’t play spoilsport as it is forecasted to do over the weekend in Kanpur. Bangladesh will be heading into day two on 107-3, with a set Mominul Haque batting on 40* after fighting through some fiery bowling from India. He is partnered by Mushfiqur Rahim, who has looked solid, with Bangladesh’s experienced lower-middle order set to follow.
Meanwhile, India will be hoping that the rain and overcast conditions will allow their bowlers to extract something from the pitch, with the impact of play not that deep on the surface so far. India clearly expected the pitch to provide some spice, with Rohit Sharma choosing to bowl first after winning the toss – the first time since 2015 an Indian captain has made that decision on home turf.
For the large part, both teams will hope the weather plays along after losing 55 overs to rain on the opening day of the match. Bangladesh played out the new ball without too much damage, and will want their veterans such as Rahim, Shakib Al Hasan, and Litton Das to capitalise on friendly conditions, before the black soil starts to play a role for India’s spin duo.
The Tigers themselves have chosen to enter this match with an extra spinner with Taijul Islam, but India will fancy their chances to have their openers set with only two pacers in the opposition. While Ravichandran Ashwin got some spin and uneven bounce, it wasn’t too threatening for the batters, and Ravindra Jadeja remained unused.
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