For the second time in Pallekele, rain pressured the gamers off the sector as India and Nepal gamers scurried off the bottom after 38 overs to keep away from getting drenched on this hilly Sri Lankan area. India’s innings too was interrupted by rain after simply 2.1 overs.
Rain in Sri Lanka in August, September, and October is just not a brand new phenomenon.
The 2002 Champions Trophy ultimate between India and Sri Lanka was performed twice over two days, and on each days, rains arrived within the night, when India began their chase, resulting in India and Sri Lanka sharing the trophy. The 2012 T20 World Cup additionally had rain-affected video games.
India’s tour to Sri Lanka in August 2006 was meant to be a comeback for Sachin Tendulkar after the surgical procedure to repair his tennis elbow, and there was an enormous media contingent that had travelled to the island nation. What began off as a tri-series between India, Sri Lanka, and South Africa grew to become a three-match bilateral ODI collection after South Africa minimize quick their keep following a collection of bomb blasts close to their staff resort.
Nevertheless, solely 22 balls had been doable in that three-match collection as Colombo was in a endless moist spell. It begs the query why Sri Lanka was chosen as a co-host to conduct the Asia Cup throughout these months. India’s reluctance to journey to Pakistan – regardless of groups like Australia, South Africa, England, and New Zealand enjoying full excursions there – meant that their matches needed to be staged elsewhere.
Former PCB chief Najam Sethi, in his deliberations with the BCCI and Asian Cricket Council President Jay Shah, had urged that the match be moved to the UAE if India didn’t wish to journey to Pakistan. Nevertheless, the ACC mentioned it was too sizzling within the UAE in September.
By the way, the 50-over Asia Cup in 2018, for which India was the host, was performed within the UAE in September. The delayed IPL in 2020 and the second leg of the T20 league in 2021 had been each performed within the UAE in September, as was the T20 Asia Cup final 12 months.
Sethi rightly lashed out on social media on Sunday as he posted. “How disappointing! Rain mars the best contest in cricket. However this was forecast. As PCB chair, I urged the ACC to play in UAE, however poor excuses had been made to accommodate Sri Lanka.”
Too sizzling in Dubai, they mentioned. But it surely was as sizzling when the Asia Cup was performed there final time in Sep 2022 or when IPL was performed there in April 2014 and Sep 2020. Politics over sport. Unforgivable!”
As Colombo, the venue of the Tremendous 4 contest between India and Pakistan on Sunday, is once more beneath a moist spell, there’s a last-ditch try to maneuver the video games out of Colombo. The R Premadasa can be slated to host 4 different Tremendous 4 video games in addition to the ultimate on September 17.
However with the forecast wanting grim, the ACC, in a late face-saving try, after receiving a roasting from followers on social media and from spectators who’ve travelled to look at their groups play, is a mulling a change in venue to both Dambulla or Hambantota. Each are drier cities. The Colombo leg begins on September 9.
