10 September,2023 07:46 PM IST | Pallekele | mid-day online correspondent
Covers come out at Pallekel stadium (Pic: @bcci/X)
The weather has been a subject of intense debate through the Sri Lanka leg of the ongoing Asia Cup 2023. Nearly a week after the group stage match between India and Pakistan was called off, the rain returned to halt play when India were 147 for two in 24.1 overs in the Super Four clash on Sunday.
India were bundled out at 266 in 48.5 overs last Saturday, with Hardik Pandya's 87 and Ishan Kishan's 82 helping the team post a decent target. However, rain played spoilsport and the match was called off without Pakistan facing a single ball.
India and Pakistan have met each other 18 times in the continental tournament. In these matchups, India have secured victory in nine games, while Pakistan emerged triumphant on six instances, with three matches concluding without a definite result.
The weather was initially way brighter, open with no big signs of rain though there were clouds. Notably, it did not rain during yesterday's Super Four clash between Sri Lanka and Bangladesh.
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According to Accuweather.com, there has been a 49 percent chance of rain at 2 PM IST in Colombo which rose to 66 percent at 3 PM IST, the scheduled start time of the game. Similarly, there were 49-69 percent chances of rain throughout the duration of the game.
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Meanwhile, Virat Kohli and K L Rahul were batting on 8 and 17 respectively after openers Rohit Sharma (56) and Shubman Gill (58) struck fine half-centuries. The organisers have added a reserve day for this India-Pakistan clash. If the match can't be completed today, it will resume tomorrow. The reserve day, however, is only for this particular game in the Super Fours stage of the tournament.
If rain washes out both the scheduled matchday and the reserve day for the Super Fours clash, both teams will be awarded a point each. In that case, Pakistan will remain top of the table with three points, having won their previous encounter against Bangladesh. India will be in the third spot with one point, just behind Sri Lanka in the second. The top two teams at the end of the Super Fours stage will qualify for the final on September 17.
(With agency inputs)
