When six hundred of them had been brought together, Clive determined to wait no longer, but started at once for Arni.
The delay enabled Riza Sahib, marching down from Vellore, to meet his reinforcements; and when Clive, after a forced march of twenty miles, approached Arni, he found the enemy, composed of three hundred French troops, two thousand five hundred Sepoys, and two thousand horsemen, with four guns, drawn up before it.

Seeing their immense superiority in numbers, these advanced to the attack.
Clive determined to await them where he stood.

The position was an advantageous one.

He occupied a space of open ground, some three hundred yards in width.

On his right flank was a village, on the left a grove of palm trees.