Former BCCI secretary S K Nair holds Kerala Cricket Association responsible for yesterday's India vs Aus abandoned ODI

Kerala association responsible for Kochi washout?

Formeru00a0BCCI secretary S K Nair holds Kerala Cricket Association responsible for yesterday's India vs Aus abandoned ODI

Former Indian cricket board secretary S K Nair hit out at the Kerala Cricket Association (KCA) after yesterday's first ODI between India and Australia at Kochi's Nehru Stadium was abandoned due to a wet outfield.

A member of the ground staff watches helplessly as the India vs
Australia odi is abandoned due to a wet outfield in Kochi yesterday.
PIC/AFP

Nair said that the KCA failed to make the required arrangements in the wake of the rains and the drainage system at the ground was poor.

"This cancellation following the rains is going to raise serious questions on the future of this ground which is the home venue for the new Kochi IPL team.

Nair's close aide Ajith Kumar, a former KCA secretary, was also critical, saying that since it rains during this time of the year, the state body could have exchanged this match with other state association and got another one to be staged sometime in

March-April. The organisers toiled hard to get the ground in shape, but a morning downpour dampened the spirits and forced the organisers to call off the match without a ball being bowled.

KCA secretary T C Mathew said: "These comments are being raised by those who have been thrown out of KCA. These are nothing but cheap comments. What should be noted is that some people who had enjoyed the hospitality provided by us and now throwing stones at us. Just like Suresh Kalmadi was attacked ahead of the CWG, I am being unnecessarily targeted," said Mathew.

u00a0The KCA decided to refund the money to ticket holders. KCA was expecting to make huge profits, but now will lose more than Rs 10 million that had been spent on organising the match.