Choking smog stopped play in the third Test between India and Sri Lanka in New Delhi on Sunday, with players wearing face masks as air quality dropped to hazardous levels in the heavily polluted capital. Many of Sri Lanka’s fielders took the extraordinary step of wearing face masks when they returned from lunch on the second day after smog visibly worsened. Play was halted for around 20 minutes at the Feroz Shah Kotla stadium as Sri Lanka complained about the smog and the umpires consulted the match referee, team doctors and physiotherapists. Play resumed but the visitors protested twice more, and pacemen Lahiru Gamage and Suranga Lakmal returned to the pavilion, leaving their team running short of fielders. This prompted Indian skipper Virat Kohli to declare his first innings on 536 for seven to get the Sri Lankan fielders off the ground. Sri Lankan players were booed by Indian fans as their opening batsmen walked to the crease. The Press Trust of India said it was the first time in the 140-year history of Test cricket that an international side had taken to the field in face masks.