India vs Sri Lanka 2017: First two ODIs to start two hours before schedule
What's the story?
The first and second ODI between India and Sri Lanka, that are scheduled to take place in Dharamsala and Mohali respectively, will start two hours ahead of the scheduled start for day/night ODIs in India. According to the new schedule, the matches that are supposed to start at 1.30 PM will start at 11.30 AM.
The reason behind preponing the start of the matches is because the cities are in the Northern part of India, where winter will be at its peak in December, making it difficult for the players to play in rough weather conditions during the night.
"The BCCI in consultations with the two staging host associations Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association (HPCA) and Punjab Cricket Association (PCA) - has revised the start times of the first two matches of the upcoming Paytm ODI series against Sri Lanka to be held in Dharamsala (Dec 10, 2017) and Mohali (Dec 13, 2017) respectively. The first two ODIs will now start at 11:30 AM. The decision was made keeping in mind the recommendation of host associations regarding inclement weather conditions in North India in the month of December," BCCI acting secretary Amitabh Choudhary said in a statement.
In case you didn't know...
Sri Lanka are currently in India to play three Tests, three ODIs and three T20Is. The first Test of the tour is being played at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata, where rain played spoilsport on the first two days and the match is poised to end in a stalemate.
Details
After the first Test, the teams will move to Nagpur and Delhi for the second and third Tests respectively. After the Test series, both the teams will play in three ODIs that will be played in Dharamsala, Mohali and Vizag followed by three T20Is in Cuttack, Indore and Mumbai.
The first two ODIs will start at 11.30 AM and the third ODI will get underway at 1.30 PM. All the three T20Is will start at 7.00 PM.
What's next?
With India scheduled to tour South Africa right after the Sri Lanka tour, there were reports that the Indian team will have a special camp to prepare for their litmus Test. So, in all likelihood, all the senior pros might be rested for the ODI and the T20I series against Sri Lanka so that they can take part in the camp and get themselves ready for the South Africa tour.
Author's Take
With North India experiencing winter in the month of November, December and January, the temperatures go into the negative. Playing a day-night match in such conditions at this time of the year would have been very difficult for the players. So, it is a sensible decision by the BCCI to prepone the matches in Mohali and Dharamsala so that the players won't be affected by the cold.