Early challenge: No team kits!

This was all but the killer blow. The Challenger Trophy suffered one last teething problem moments before the first match began today: The late arrival of team kits.

The 2 p.m. toss was not, as expected, followed by the appearance of the batsmen and fielders. They were waiting for their clothes, which didn’t arrive from Bangalore till 2-30, the scheduled start time.

The delay caught everyone on the back foot with no explanations forthcoming. Interestingly BCCI secretary SK Nair, just back from an ICC meeting in Melbourne, ‘‘blamed’’ the national selectors for the delayed arrival.

‘‘The selectors named the teams only on February 3rd, so the suppliers had just three days. There are 36 players with different measurements — and this is about coloured clothing’’, he told The Indian Express.