After all the anticipation, day one of the first of three Tests turned out to be a damp squib. If any fans had been allowed in they would have been jeering and complaining as the players remained in the pavilion for more than 90 minutes because of bad light, despite Southampton's Ageas Bowl having floodlights.
If that frustration, an issue administrators appear powerless or unwilling to address, was all-too familiar, much else about the occasion felt very different.
