Rain ruins first day of India tour match against CA XI

India’s on-field preparations for its four-match Test series against Australia were scheduled to start at 10.30 am on Wednesday, with a four-day match against an inexperienced Cricket Australia (CA) XI at the Sydney Cricket Ground.

But morning storms created chaos here, where the average rainfall for the entire month of November was recorded in less than two hours. The forecast was so grim that India’s Test squad never arrived at the iconic venue. The showers did eventually stop and there was brief hope of a 3.30pm toss, but play was abandoned without a single delivery being bowled.

Virat Kohli, fiercely competitive at the best of times and desperate to lead India to its first Test series win in Australia, opted for a gym session rather than a day off. In an unwanted twist for the underprepared visitor, Wednesday initially wasn’t part of the game schedule until CA agreed to extend the match to four days so India could get more practice.

India asked this week for the game not to be given first-class status, a wish that was also granted and will allow it to test out more players from its squad, rather than being restricted to an XI. When it gets on the field, India will face a team made up of players not selected for the current Sheffield Shield round, with D’Arcy Short the only member with international experience.

India is yet to complain publicly about the fact its opposition has five players without any first-class experience, but it’s understood it isn’t pleased.

“A lot of people talk about tour games, but where are those tour games happening and against what quality of bowling are very important questions,” Kohli said earlier this year in England, where the visitor successfully asked for its only four-day tune-up to be reduced to three days.

“Time is not utilised well if you don’t get the quality of opposition that you will face in Test cricket.” Veteran quick Ishant Sharma adopted a more diplomatic line on Tuesday, insisting the quality of India’s opposition in its only warm-up match wasn’t a concern. “I never think too much about all these things,” Ishant said. “Because if you go with this kind of feeling, then you relax a bit. It is pretty serious for us because it will set the tone for the Test series.” The issue of warm-up quality has become a global one due to a cluttered schedule.