The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has confirmed that the first day’s play of the ICC World Test Championship final between India and New Zealand at the Rose Bowl in Southampton has been called off.
The BCCI took to Twitter to share the unfortunate news with the fans. They wrote:
UPDATE – Unfortunately, play on Day 1 has been called off due to rains. 10.30 AM local time start tomorrow.
Also Read: WTC Final: Sunil Gavaskar Suggests India Might Change Their Playing XI For Summit Clash
UPDATE – Unfortunately, play on Day 1 has been called off due to rains. 10.30 AM local time start tomorrow.#WTC21
— BCCI (@BCCI) June 18, 2021
The weather showed some signs of hope after the first session as the rains stopped with the umpires due for an inspection at 7:30 PM IST. But the rain gods showed no respite and it started pouring in once again, compelling the match officials to call it a day.
Meanwhile, the weather in Southampton looks gloomy for the next few days as well with high chances of precipitation.
ICC has added a reserve day for WTC final
The ICC has added a reserve day (June 23) for the illustrious WTC final. The sixth day will only be used to “ensure five full days of play”. In simple words, it will only be used if lost overs (due to any reason) can’t be completed in the first five days of the WTC final.
In a statement published on their website, the ICC confirmed that the sixth day will only be used in case of any interruptions during the first five days.
The reserve day has been scheduled to ensure five full days of play, and it will only be used if lost playing time cannot be recovered through the normal provisions of making up lost time each day. There will be no additional day’s play if a positive result is not achieved after five full days of play and the match will be declared a draw in such a scenario.
“In the event of time being lost during the match, the ICC match referee will regularly update the teams and media about the way in which the reserve day may be used. The final decision on whether the reserve day needs to be used will be announced at the scheduled start of the last hour on the fifth day.”