Cricketers and fans faced the brutal consequences of the sweltering heat during the first ODI between England and South Africa at the Riverside floor of Chester-le-Road on Tuesday. The usual drink breaks, wet towels, ice packs and umbrellas kept players from interrupting.
Learn more about: Have always admired his vitality and dedication to the game: Stokes on Kohli
However, ODI debutant Matthew Potts was out of the dressing room after bowling just 4 overs. An exhausted Potts was seen sitting in an England dressing room, drinking fluids while medics assessed his condition, Mirror reported on Tuesday.
It was a record-breaking summer day with the temperature hovering around 37 degrees Celsius and the spectators at the venue had to resort to different methods to deal with the gruesome conditions. Some properties were abandoned in the hope of returning at a later stage, when the situation had eased, while others sought shadows, within the gaps between divisions or leaning against the flanks.
Host County Durham reportedly arranges a ‘cooling room’ for the followers to recover. According to a report in the Belfast Telegraph, some followers even fainted, requiring medical attention.
Durham also gave its employees the responsibility of distributing water throughout the grounds.
According to another report, the in-ground announcer kept advising fans to retain drinking water and find shade if possible.
England and Wales Cricket The Board (ECB) and Durham reportedly met over punitive conditions, looking for an approach to help minimize the consequences.
Learn more about: Match-again Sundar makes his debut for Lancashire
In the first match of the series, South Africa won the toss and decided to bat first. Rassie van der Dussen hit a century while Aiden Markram and opener Janmaine Malan scored half-centuries as the tourists posted 333/5 in 50 overs.
Van der Dussen scored 133 runs in 117, while Markram scored 77 runs in 61 balls and Malan scored 57 runs in 77. For England, Liam Livingstone scored 2/29 in 4 overs, while Brydon Cars, Moeen Ali and Sam Curran took a wicket each.
Get all the latest updates cricket information, cricket pictures, cricket movies And cricket score right here