Afghanistan vs New Zealand One-Off Test Day 1 Called Off Without A Ball Being Bowled In Greater Noida

09.09.2024 - 14:00 sports.ndtv.com

No play was possible on the opening day of the one-off Test between New Zealand and Afghanistan due to a wet outfield here on Monday.

The match officials conducted multiple inspections through the day but the conditions were not fit enough for players to take the field.

There was no rain on Monday but the ground, lacking a modern drainage system, has has been impacted by heavy rain through the last week.

With rain and thunderstorms forecast throughout the week, it is yet to be found out how many days of the Test is impacted. This is the first-ever Test between New Zealand against Afghanistan, who got their Test status in 2017.

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India tightened their grip on the top spot of the World Test Championship (WTC) 2025 cycle with a comprehensive 280-run victory over Bangladesh in Chennai, while Sri Lanka boosted their chances of making the final by outclassing New Zealand in Galle. Both teams secured crucial points, adding intrigue to the race for the final two spots in next year's WTC finale at Lord's. India's latest triumph extended their lead at the top of the table, reaching a percentage of 71.67%.

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Sri Lanka vs New Zealand 1st Test, Live Streaming: Sri Lanka will be taking on New Zealand in the first Test of the two-match series, starting from Wednesday in Galle. The Dhananjaya de Silva-led side will be coming to this clash after acing a 1-2 defeat in a recently-concluded three-match Test series against England. New Zealand, on the other hand, arrived in India few days back to play their one-off Test against Afghanistan. However, the match got abandoned without a ball being bowled as for the first two days, the groundstaff at the Greater Noida stadium failed to make the ground match ready due to wet outfield. Later, the heavy rain resulted in the match getting cancelled.

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The one-off Test match between Afghanistan and New Zealand at the Shaheed Vijay Singh Pathik Stadium in Greater Noida was abandoned without a single ball being bowled over the five days. It rained for three out of the five days of the match and the wet outfield did not allow the umpires to start the match even once. The stadium facilities also came under a lot of criticism as they were not able to get the surface ready for play even when it did not rain for an entire day. It rained in the last two days and the match officials had no other choice but to abandon the match completely on Friday.

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The much anticipated one-off Test between Afghanistan and New Zealand had to be called off due to rains and wet outfield in Greater Noida. While the final three days of the game saw rain resulting in play being abandoned, the first couple of days were had clear skies but the wet outfield didn't allow even the toss to be held. It was the first time in India's history of hosting Test cricket that a Test match had to be abandoned without a single ball being bowled. But, such a result isn't as rare in world cricket.

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Disappointed and frustrated after rain forced their one-off Test to be abandoned without any play, head coaches of Afghanistan and New Zealand on Friday said only inclement weather was to be blamed for the fiasco as scheduling a match during monsoon season is "always tricky". A wet outfield and persistent rain played spoilsport and authorities at the ill-equipped Shaheed Vijay Singh Pathik Sports Complex were at their wits' end to make the field suitable for play. It was only the eight instance of a Test being abandoned without any action.

Afghanistan vs New Zealand Greater Noida Test Match Abandoned Without A Ball Being Bowled

The one-off Test between Afghanistan and New Zealand was called off on Friday without a ball being bowled owing to incessant rain here, making it only the eighth instance of a match being abandoned in such a manner in the history of five-day games. It was the first time that a Test was abandoned without any play at an Indian venue. The first two days of the game were cancelled because of a wet outfield, raising significant concerns about the preparedness of the Shaheed Vijay Singh Pathik Sports Complex. The remaining three days were then washed out due to persistent rain.