 "The Greater Noida cricket field pictured covered as it rains during the one-off Test between Afghanistan and New Zealand. AFP")
The one-off Test between Afghanistan and New Zealand was officially washed out on Friday without a ball being bowled across the five days. There was no possibility for the toss either.
“It is still raining in Greater Noida and due to frequent rains, the 5th and final day of Afghanistan vs New Zealand test has been also called off by the match officials,” said the message from the Afghanistan Cricket Board, the hosts for the Test in Greater Noida, on the outskirts of New Delhi.
Unrelenting rain coupled with poor facilities has had the final say in Greater Noida. For three straight days, play was called off before the scheduled start time (9:30am IST).
It had rained quite a bit in and around Greater Noida coming into the fifth day. Of the five days, only the opening day could have witnessed cricket but sub-par drainage system and slushy outfield rendered that impossible. As it remained for the remaining days as well.
Unusual methods were used to dry the ground this week at Greater Noida with electric fans used on wet patches that were also dug up and replaced with new mud and grass.
The tactics proved futile as unrelenting rain on day three, four and five pelted the ground, which was left with covers and puddles.
Afghanistan have successfully played six Twenty20 and five one-day internationals at the Greater Noida venue since 2017.
Impact Shorts
More ShortsThis is the eighth Test to have been abandoned without a ball being bowled. The last came in 1998, in Dunedin, between India and New Zealand.
This was Afghanistan’s only tenth Test match since they were given Full Member status in 2017. For New Zealand, the one-off Test was to mark the beginning of their subcontinent expedition which includes two Tests in Sri Lanka followed by three in India. Unlike those five matches, this one is not part of the World Test Championship.
List of Test matches abandoned without a ball bowled:
An abandoned 1970 Test match between Australia and England at the MCG gave birth to limited overs cricket (one-day international cricket).
Australia and England decided to play a 40-over contest on the originally scheduled fifth day once the weather had relented, and it was later officially recognised as the first-ever ODI.
England vs Australia at Old Trafford, Manchester in 1890
England vs Australia at Old Trafford, Manchester in 1938
Australia vs England at Melbourne Cricket Ground in 1970
New Zealand vs Pakistan at Carisbrook, Dunedin in 1989
West Indies vs England at Bourda, Georgetown, Guyana in 1990
Pakistan vs Zimbabwe at Iqbal Stadium, Faisalabad in 1998
New Zealand vs India at Carisbrook, Dunedin in 1998