Rain was forecast for Thiruvananthapuram on Tuesday and a downpour in the evening meant that the toss for the deciding T20 between India and New Zealand could not take place on schedule at 6.30pm. This is the first international match at the Greenfield Stadium.
Kerala's State capital has hosted international cricket before, but at the University Stadium. The last completed match in this city was way back in 1988, between India and West Indies.
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The much awaited hour is here finally as international cricket returns to the city after a gap of close to 29 years. And fans could not have asked for more with the Paytm Twenty20 three-match series between India and New Zealand tantalisingly tied one-all.
Colin Munro’s marauding knock in Rajkot on Saturday has rekindled the interest for the last game at the Sports Hub, Kariyavattom, on Tuesday.
It was on October 1, 1984, that Thiruvananthapuram got its first chance to host an international — a One-Day International against Australia, which unfortunately was abandoned due to rain in the second session.
Finally on January 25, 1988, the ODI against West Indies was completed — at the University Stadium — and was won by the visitors with a huge nine-wicket margin. They were driven home by an unbeaten 104 from Phil Simmons and an equally brilliant 86 from Gordon Greenidge.