Greater Noida: There was no end to the rain woes that have plagued the one-off Test between Afghanistan and New Zealand here with the third day's play also called off without a ball being bowled amid concerns that the entire match would be washed out.
The first two days of the game were called off due to a wet outfield, raising serious questions over the preparedness of the venue. Considering the inclement weather, the match officials did not take long to rule out any possibility of play on Wednesday. The toss is yet to take place for the game.
"Afghanistan versus New Zealand Day 3 is called off due to persistent rains. The match will commence with 98 overs from tomorrow if the skies get clear," said the Afghanistan Cricket Board in a release.
The BCCI has been assisting by providing "additional machinery" to make "conditions ideal" for the match to start. Extra covers were brought in from the Arun Jaitley Stadium on Tuesday evening and almost the entire ground was covered. However, there were puddles of water on the uncovered areas.
While New Zealand trained for a while on Tuesday, the team did not travel to the ground on Wednesday. The Afghanistan team, barring coach Jonathan Trott, too did not show up. With more rain predicted in the next two days, it looks unlikely that the game will go ahead.
"The outlook is quite grim for not just today, but potentially all five days of the Test match," the broadcasters said. Only seven matches in the history of Test cricket have been abandoned without a ball being bowled.
Incidentally, the Black Caps were involved in the last one in 1998, which took place in Dunedin, New Zealand. Afghanistan, who don't get to play top teams often, are the hosts of the game.
It is their 10th Test match since receiving the five-day status from the ICC in 2017. It is the first time the two nations are scheduled to play each other in the longest format of the game. This Test is not part of the ICC's World Test Championship cycle.
