India vs Australia 3rd ODI : Rain casts a shadow

The Indian team, sans skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni, had a full net session at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Margao, Goa, on Friday before it started raining heavily to put a question mark over the third and final ODI against Australia on Sunday.

The Australian team held their practice session in the morning under an overcast sky. Both outfits are scheduled to have their prematch net session on Saturday. The series had a damp start with rains washing out the first ODI at Kochi on October 17 without a ball being bowled. The second match at Visakhapatnam on October 20 was won by India by five wickets.

Australia need a victory in the last match to level the series but there is a question mark on the match with the state meteorological department officials predicting rains in next 48 hours in several parts of the state. Met department director KV Singh said that circulation off the Maharashtra coast, which is drifting towards South Konkan and Goa, has created cloudy condition in the state.

He added the south- west monsoon is yet to withdraw from the state and it is likely to rain in the next 48 hours. The state has been witnessing continuous rainfall this month with 191.7 mm rains having been recorded so far. The Goa Cricket Association is keeping its fingers crossed. A sellout crowd of 27,000 is expected to witness the eighth ODI at this venue. - PTI