Rain and thunderstorm today delayed the proceedings of the last round Indian Premier League T20 cricket clash between Kolkata Knight Riders and Mumbai Indians at Eden Gardens here today.
Rain accompanied by thunderstorm lashed the city for more than half an hour around 4pm.
It took more than two hours to clear the water but it again started to drizzle to make it a dampener for a sellout crowd who kept filling in the stands.
It will be a test for the newly relaid Eden Gardens wicket and the outfield which went through a coring measure after the Sourav Ganguly administration took over.
Earlier the Eden Gardens soil had silt clay as coring measure was done in two phases over four months before last year's World Twenty20.
The coring was done to increase sand content to facilitate water absorption and drainage of the water.
Overs will start reducing if the match does not start before 9.15 as a minimum of five overs a side is needed to complete a match.
For a minimum five overs to take place the match has to begin by 11.26 otherwise it will be declared 'rain abandoned'.
Rain abandonment in fact will help KKR's cause as they will seal a last-four berth by getting one point.
Mumbai with 18 points were the first team to make the playoffs and were today joined by Sunrisers Hyderabad (17) by virtue of their eight-wicket win over Gujarat Lions in the afternoon match.
The news that star owner Shah Rukh Khan will finally make an appearance at their home venue with his Bollywood entourage had added to the excitement for the clash between the two sides.
The last IPL match to have a washout here was in 2015 during KKR's fixture against Rajasthan Royals on April 26.
The rain, however, brought relief to the parched city which was reeling under intense heat and humid conditions for several days.
These weather conditions are attributed to a trough which is extending from North Bihar up to Chhattisgarh across Jharkhand region. Thus, moisture incursion is taking place from the Bay of Bengal which has led to cloud development over parts of West Bengal.
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