The third day of the only Test between Afghanistan and New Zealand was called off because of rain. File
| Photo Credit: AP

Incessant rain led to the abandonment of the third day’s play in the one-off Test between Afghanistan and New Zealand at the Shaheed Vijay Singh Pathik Stadium on Wednesday.

As it rained heavily the previous night, there were puddles in several parts of the ground, forcing the match officials to call play at 9 a.m. While the New Zealand players stayed back at the hotel, Afghanistan head coach Jonathan Trott had a look at the surface. He left the venue after a brief conversation with the groundsmen.

In contrast to the first two days, where only the pitch was covered, the groundstaff made it a point to cover almost the entire ground to avoid further damage to the outfield.

After drawing flak over the last few days, the stadium authorities and Afghanistan Cricket Board brought covers from the Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi on Tuesday evening while the Uttar Pradesh CA sent a couple of super soppers to get the ground back in shape. However, things were beyond anyone’s control.