With heavy rain lashing the city for the past eight days, Sunday's AFC Challenge Cup final football match between India and Tajikistan may be postponed and shifted to another city.

Because of incessant rain, the playing surface at the Gachibowli Stadium has deteriorated and India's last group match against Turkmenistan (on Sunday) and the semifinal against Myanmar (on Thursday) were played virtually on a paddy field, with mud and pools of water all over the ground.

That prompted Myanmar coach Marcos Antonio Falopa to comment that their semifinal match against India was like a rugby game.

AFC media officer Steve Tae Kim told reporters that the organisers have three options at their disposal and will decide on the matter after the inspection of the Gachibowli ground by the tournament organising committee, which has All India Football Federation General Secretary Alberto Colaco as a member.

The Committee inspected the ground in the morning and they will take a decision at 1600 hrs whether to play the match, as scheduled or postpone to a future date.

If the match is postponed it is certain it will play in another city.

"We have three options now. First, it may be played tomorrow as scheduled either at the Gachibowli Stadium or Lal Bahadur Stadium in Hyderabad.

The second option is to shift the venue to another city and play within a week. The last option is to postpone the game for a month or two. A decision will be taken by the Committee at 1600 hrs," he said.

Playing in Hyderabad after a few days was not considered an option because of uncertainty that rain may stop in the next couple of days.

Indian coach Bob Houghton ruled out playing at Lal Bahadur Stadium at the heart of the city and wants to shift the game to another city, but with rain prevailing almost everywhere in the country he said he would not suggest any venue.

"The ground at Gachibowli was unplayable and with the kind of rain here, it will be worse tomorrow. The match then will not be decided by football skills. It will be a shame if a final match of such an important tournament is decided by factors not connected to football.

"Lal Bahadur Stadium was no better than Gachibowli. It will be an embarrassment for the AFC and AIFF if the final is played at LBS which is a cricket ground," he said.

The Englishman said playing within a week in another place seems to be the best option, though it will be massive exercise for the AFC to transport more than 60 people - players of both teams and television crew - to another city.

Asked which city he would prefer to play, he said with rain throughout the country, he would not be able to choose a venue. He, however, ruled out Kolkata.

"I don't know which place we would like to play with rain everywhere in the country. But don't tell me Kolkata," he said.

Delhi must have been in Houghton's mind considering the excellent playing surface and the capacity crowd at the final match of Nehru Cup last August, but the country's capital city is also experiencing heavy rains for the past few days.

Houghton said postponing the final to one or two months will affect India's domestic calendar as the second edition of I-League is starting mid-September.

"Moreover, we do not want to wait that long. We have prepared hard for this tournament. I can't keep the boys together for that long," the home team coach said.