New York fans head to India v Pakistan T20 World Cup match amid rain

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Rain threatened to play spoilsport as thousands of fans in the New York metro area travelled to the highly-anticipated T20 World Cup match between India and Pakistan on Sunday.

It was a carnival atmosphere as fans loaded on to commuter rail trains and buses donned with team gear. People gave away free flags and armbands at the bus station, while others cheered to raise excitement at the early morning hour.

Others who drove into the area crowded on to sidewalks in the direction of the purpose-built Nassau County stadium.

That last thing fans needed was weather to disrupt plans. Unfortunately, that is what happened on Sunday as a light shower - which briefly turned into heavy rainfall - swept through the stadium just an hour before the match. As a result, the toss had to be delayed.

The Nassau County International Cricket Stadium, a newly-built stadium nestled in Eisenhower Park of Long Island, has hosted four matches so far. But ahead of Sunday's big match, criticism grew over the quality of the pitches at the new stadium, which is only a few months old. The surfaces have proven to be extraordinarily challenging for batsmen, leading to very low scores.