India vs South Africa 4th T20I, Highlights: After 6 inspections, fog in Lucknow forces match to be abandoned

HERE WE GO! SIXTH INSPECTION UNDERWAY!

Umpires have surely completed their 10k steps for the day.

Behind the broadcasters at the moment, we can't see anyone on the field.

At this point, we are just waiting for the inevitable. Maybe another inpsection at 9.44 pm, one minute before cut off time, is on the cards.

Mr. Rajeev Shukla walked out into the middle to have a word with the officials. Next inspection at 9 pm.

They are just messing with us at this point.

Fans, meanwhile, have their mobile phones light out. Not sure that will help with visibility, folks.

Robin Uthappa would be pleased finally, as they have moved into the studio with Mayanti Langer and Dale Steyn. But behind them, it's still very much hazy.

LALITH KALIDAS: Another round of deliberations between the three umpires have predictably failed. Next inspection at 8:30 and the groundsmen roll out the covers onto the pitch

Robin Uthappa, meanwhile, asking what we have been wondering for a while. Why do they keep delaying when the visibility is only likely to get worse?

LALITH KALIDAS: Covers and a heavy roller come out together. Not sure what they're up to now, but the fog cover has remained intact, if not gotten worse in the last 15 minutes or so

The umpires are walking out to the middle.

Robbie Uthappa is joking he wants to move to the studio and get some warmth. The temperature has dropped too evidently.

Lalith Kalidas from the venue: Next inspection 730 pm

The question now is, if the match is delayed by fog at 6.30 pm, it is unlikely that the conditions would get better as the evening goes on.

UPDATE FROM BCCI: Toss in Lucknow has been delayed due to excessive fog. Next inspection at 6:50 PM.

Taking out the Abhishek factor from India’s 2025 T20I storyboard means reducing the Gambhir-coached side into one of the weakest-performing top 4 heading into the final laps of the World Cup rehearsal. In all likelihood, the two outings at the Ekana Stadium and Ahmedabad later this week are the last set of revisions possible before a provisional World Cup squad is named in the first week of the New Year, before the five-match New Zealand series. Without Abhishek’s buccaneering kinetics, India’s top order is poorer by not just 42 percent of runs, but almost the entire horsepower heft that has kept them in contention with teams like England and Australia, whose regular top-four bats are comfortably and collectively striking over 150. Illustrating a situation without Abhishek, plus a wobbly Gill and Suryakumar, India’s top-order strike rate tumbles from 147.79 to 124.20, the average taking a hit by 20 runs (23.90) across 20 games. None of the other top-eight ranked teams at the World Cup have been slower with the bat than India in such a scenario either this year, underscoring the significance of Abhishek’s daredevilry in the setup.

After turbocharging India to 60 within the Powerplay, Abhishek’s dismissal had provided the classic boilerplate for desperate batters seeking an escape. For the inexplicable mishmash of No. 3s — none have played twice in succession in the position in seven games since the Australia tour — Suryakumar turned down the opportunity. Moving up to 24 off 16 deliveries with boundaries of varying assurance, Gill soon hit a wall. He would add only four more in the next 12 deliveries before a robotic cut ended his stay. Suryakumar could see some light at the end of the tunnel with only 26 to win, but the walls caved in on him too. Steering through a pacy back-of-length probe from Anrich Nortje, two crisp connections off Lungi Ngidi sped to the fence. He couldn’t refuse the inviting slider down leg then. The pick-up flick is bread and butter when on song. The two successive boundaries had deceived him into believing he had hit his straps. The year’s backlog was still in place, refusing to leave him just away. Suryakumar skied the ball straight down to the fine leg fielder.

Can Shubman and SKY deliver today?

In the decisive fourth T20I on the Australia tour last month, Dube had stubbed the home team’s 168-run chase by dismissing captain Mitchell Marsh and the dangerous Tim David with adept deployment of the off-cutter and a slower-bumper from varying angles at the crease. On Sunday in Dharamsala, he rocked South Africa all-rounder Corbin Bosch’s leg stump with a ball that scuttled in from the length, insisting that there are more tricks up his sleeve.

“T20 is a game where you have to be smart. I was smart when I bowled before, but I didn’t know when, how and what to apply. As soon as Gautam (Gambhir) and Suryakumar Yadav supported me and told me that I could do it, I put myself in those situations. I realised that I can bowl in challenging situations as well,” he added.

Not certain if spectators in the upper stands will be able to get a proper viewing of the action in the middle tonight. An hour out from the toss, things increasingly appear hazy from the press box at least. This will be the first T20 night game played at the venue in December.

Photo: Lalith Kalidas

Batting first during the third T20I of their tour of India, in sub-10 degrees Celcius temperatures in the Himalayan hillside on Sunday, it took South Africa 101 balls to hit their first six; Donovan Ferreira slog-swept Kuldeep Yadav for a massive hit over midwicket. In their run chase, built to be tricky against four quality fast bowlers on a Dharamshala pitch that had considerable seam movement, it took India just one. Abhishek Sharma’s flicked first-ball six off Lungi Ngidi over fine leg proved prophetic. India comfortably strolled to the 119-run target set by the visitors with 25 balls and seven wickets to spare to take a 2-1 series lead into Lucknow in this five-game series.

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