Bengaluru, Oct 17 (IANS) The rain-hit fifth and final T20I between India and the West Indies at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium here on Saturday has been reduced to a nine-overs-a-side contest, with the toss to happen at 9 pm and play set to begin 15 minutes later.
The Power-play in the truncated game will last just 2.4 overs. The toss was originally scheduled for 6:30 pm, but steady rain kept the covers on and both teams in their dressing rooms.
The breakthrough came around 8:30 pm, when the ground staff rushed out and began peeling off the covers. The sheet over the square came off to loud cheers from the crowd, who were waiting patiently.
Reserve umpire Virender Sharma then walked out to the middle, where KSCA president Venkatesh Prasad and vice-president Sujith Somasundar were inspecting the pitch and conditions. On-field umpires Nitin Menon and Rohan Pandit soon joined them.
The game will be played on the central strip, which looked dry once uncovered. The covers on the bowlers' run-ups were also cleared, while a super sopper got to work on the outfield.
"The surface looks dry enough, but I can't see what's underneath. Bound to be some moisture, which will mean there could be some hold on the surface thanks to the rain," said former West Indies pacer Ian Bishop on the broadcast.
India's throwdown specialist Raghu was the first out with the kit bag, followed by veteran pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar, whose appearance drew a huge roar from the stands. The shortened contest will decide the winner of the series currently locked at 2-2.
India, the reigning T20 World Cup champions, will be keen to avoid a second straight bilateral series defeat to the West Indies after their 2-3 loss in August 2023. West Indies skipper Shai Hope has been the standout batter of the series with 261 runs, including two hundreds in winning causes.
With the Chinnaswamy stadium having short boundaries, a nine-over affair promises plenty of fireworks. It is also the venue's first international fixture since the India-New Zealand Test in October 2024. The stadium had been out of the reckoning for international games following the stampede during Royal Challengers Bengaluru's IPL title celebrations in June 2025.
--IANS
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