India, NZ players asked not to walk off the field over sun glare

WELLINGTON: The New Zealand and India cricketers were told to toughen up Thursday and not walk off the field even if they are blinded by the sun and can’t see the ball.

The first one-day international between the two sides was halted for 37 minutes in Napier on Wednesday when the umpires deemed the setting sun made it too dangerous for the players. The problem lay with the McLean Park wicket running east to west rather than in the traditional north-south orientation.

The low-lying sun was in the eyes of Indian batsmen Virat Kohli and Shikhar Dhawan who were facing deliveries of up to 150 kilometres per hour (94 mph) fired at them from less than 20 metres away.

But an unsympathetic Bill Dalton, the mayor of Napier City that bills McLean Park as the “jewel in the crown” of its sports grounds, did not see that as reason enough for the players to leave the field.