Match officials stopped play in the third cricket test between South Africa and India because of a dangerous pitch, an extremely rare decision taken after Proteas batsman Dean Elgar was hit in the grill of the helmet and needed a concussion test. The move by match officials to take players off because of concerns over their safety was only the third time in the history of test cricket that a game has been stopped in this way.
The game wasn't completely called off, though. After meetings involving match officials and team captains Faf du Plessis and Virat Kohli, it was decided the test would continue the next day. Proteas opening batsman Dean Elgar copped a series of unplayable deliveries to the body before the umpires ruled the pitch was too dangerous to continue on. "The on-field umpires, in consultation with the match referee, and after speaking with both the captains and groundsmen, have decided that the Johannesburg test will resume on time on Saturday," the ICC said in a statement.
Cricket's ruling body said on-field umpires Ian Gould and Aleem Dar had called players off because they wanted to consult with match referee Andy Pycroft "regarding the condition of the pitch". Elgar was the latest in a series of batsmen from both teams to be hit by the ball on a fast, bouncy and unpredictable surface at the Wanderers. He was the first to be hit on the head, though, with others getting struck on the fingers, and in the ribs and midriff.
There had been signs throughout the day that the umpires were worried over the surface, and both team managers were called into Pycroft's office at the tea break to be told the officials were considering ruling the pitch dangerous.
The blow to Elgar's helmet, which came after he had been also hit on the hand and on the hip, was the final straw. The decision to stop play infuriated India, which had a 223-run lead and was in control of a game they desperately want to win after already losing the series and facing an embarrassing 3-0 whitewash.
