IMAGE: The India vs New Zealand semi-final match is likely to be interrupted by rain. Photograph: ICC/Twitter
India and New Zealand will face off in the first International Cricket Council World Cup semi-final, on Tuesday, at the Old Trafford in Manchester.
The first semi-final clash is likely to be interrupted by rain, with light showers forecast for the match day. According to the British MET department, “it will start to cloud over from the west during the evening. Maximum temperature 20 °C.”
Manchester could experience patchy drizzle later in the night.
Incidentally, the India vs New Zealand league phase encounter in Nottingham was called off due to rain without a single ball being bowled.
With wet weather expected to affect Tuesday’s semifinal match, the Duckworth-Lewis-Stern (DLS) method could come to feature prominently.
Apart from the weather, New Zealand will have to find a way to deal with Rohit Sharma, who smashed a record fifth century at this year’s tournament against Sri Lanka on Saturday.
The ICC has kept a reserve day for the knockout matches. So if the match cannot be completed on Tuesday, the two teams will pick up from where they left it on Wednesday.
However, the weather forecast for Wednesday is also not promising as ‘rather extensive rain’ along with generally overcast conditions has been forecast for the day.
In the event that play cannot be completed on Wednesday as well and the match is washed out, India will qualify for the final on the basis of more points (15) than New Zealand (11) in the league stage.
New Zealand, the tournament runners-up last time, grabbed the last semi-final berth after a hat-trick of defeats nearly derailed their strong start in the tournament.
