Nagpur, Sep 23 (IANS): A wet patch at the deep mid-on continued to delay the start of the second T20 International between India and Australia in the 2022 Series here on Friday and the umpires have deemed it too risky for the players. The umpires will have another inspection at 8.45 pm.

The wet area between wide min-on and deep mid-on is soft and moving underfoot and not safe for the players, the umpires K.N Ananthapadmanabhan and Nitin Menon concluded after a second inspection of the outfield at the Vidarbha Cricket Association (VCA) Stadium at Jamtha here.

The umpires had a chat with the two captains and informed them of their decision. They are now hoping that the ground staff could dry that particular area in the next 30-odd minutes and it could be safe for the players. Though the ground was under covers since Wednesday, rainwater seemed to have leaked at one or two places.

The umpires inspected the ground at 7 pm first and then at 8 pm but were not happy with the ground conditions as the outfield was drying at a slower pace than expected.

The match was officially set to start at 7 pm.

The ground staff has been working on the wet patches near the boundary rope since the afternoon, running the light roller. They have been seen sprinkling sawdust on some of the patches.

Orange City has experienced some heavy spells of rain in the last few days. It had rained very heavily on Wednesday night.

Though it has not rained since Thursday afternoon, the ground staff could not take out the covers because of overcast conditions. A spell of rain was predicted for Thursday evening, though it did not rain.

Though the sun came out at noon on Friday, it was not potent enough to dry the outfield quickly.