India's spin-bowling all-rounder Ravichandran Ashwin would have been looking forward to being accurate with the ball in hand maybe on Day 1 of the eagerly anticipated final of the World Test Championship. However, rain had other plans in store for India and New Zealand - and their supporters - as the first day was washed out without as much as the toss taking place. However, as they waited during the day to see if there was any chance of play resuming, Ashwin used the spare time to try his hand at being accurate with something else - darts!
In a video tweeted by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), Ashwin can be seen playing darts with members of India's coaching staff.
"When rain didn't stop play," the BCCI wrote with a wink emoji. "#TeamIndia members enjoyed a game of dart on the sidelines during the rain break in Southampton."
Watch the video here:
Initially, the first session was washed out due to incessant rain in Southampton. There was a glimmer of hope of some play taking place when rain stopped and an inspection was scheduled for half-way through what would have been the second session. But shortly before the expected time of the inspection, it started to rain again and the umpires decided to abandon play for the day.
There is a reserve day on June 23 to try and make up for lost time, if it is not possible to do so within the scheduled five days' play, and a call on that will be taken later on in the match by the officials.