It was a nice change of scenery for everyone when we moved from Chennai to Hyderabdad, even if they hotel wasn't as nice as the Meridian. At least we were close to shops, the Internet and Pizza Hut.

The food markets are handy for everyone to stock up their fridges instead of using room service all the time. The Internet is much cheaper than at the Business Centre in the hotel at 30 rupees an hour which is only two New Zealand dollars. And with 25 PCs lined up for use, as compared to only two at the hotel, there is no-one waiting to get on the Internet at any one time.

Pizza Hut is a blessing in disguise for those of us who are sick of the spicy curries they dish up out of here even though you ask for a very, very mild.

The team has had a shock with the change in standards since leaving Chennai where we were treated well and everything ran smoothly. We are now experiencing what it is really like to tour India as things go wrong and you can never assume anything.

The bus was late for our first practice, the practice facilities were scruffy, very small and enclosed.

The next day was Sunday, and the morning of our first one-day game against Mumbai who we beat in the first round in Chennai. The matches start at 9am which means a 6.30am breakfast in order to catch the bus to the ground at 7.15am.

The only problem is that the breakfast area doesn't open until 7.30am. So not only was breakfast late but we were late getting to the ground.

When we did get there, the changing room was dark and smelly, the lights didn't work, there were cobwebs everywhere and the toilets didn't extend to toilet paper.

Our warm-ups were done on a scruffy outfield and it was hard to tell the pitch from the outfield.

Then to cap things off, three-quarters of the way through a game which was shaping for a great finish, a pipe burst and water came gushing up close to the pitch and the game could not be finished.

Everyone was pretty grumpy and disappointed at the state of events but that's India. You have to expect the unexpected and learn to embrace issues and tolerate things that are out of your control.

We all learnt a valuable lesson and are now trying to be bigger than the situation and to make the most of every opportunity by turning it into a learning experience.

Two days later we were back at the stadium for our second match. It too was abandoned because the pitch prepared for us was so soft it was deemed dangerous to play on.

Having waited around for much of the day to see if it would harden we went back to the hotel only to find that those of us who had left our keys at reception had to wait some more before we could get into our rooms.

Why?

Because they did not have our keys as there were away getting polished. Only in India could this be possible.

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