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‌AFG vs NZ | Persistent rain and poor outfield spoils one-off Test in Greater Noida’s unfortunate first

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ByArijit Kundu, SportsCafe Editor

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The one-off Test between New Zealand and Afghanistan at the Greater Noida Sports Complex has been called off without a ball being bowled after rain playing spoilsport in the last couple of days. Apparently, the poor ground conditions came under scrutiny in the first-ever Test hosted at the venue.

The on-field umpires called off the game on the fifth day of the Test after persistent rain was witnessed in the morning on Friday. The climate was predicted to be gloomy from the first day of the Test itself and it turned out to be true. This is the first-ever Test since 1998 that a game was washed off with no action throughout the five days. The last occurrence was in a Test between Pakistan and Zimbabwe in Dunedin in 1998.

While the rain paused after the first day, the ground wasn’t prepared in due time for play to take place. There were puddles around the outfield and a few parts near the strips were patchy. Visuals of the groundstaff using fans and other means to dry the areas went viral on the second and third days of the game when the sun was prominent. The only time when the Kiwis got into action was during a net session that caught the attention of a few fans. 

Afghanistan are scheduled to play three ODIs against South Africa in Sharjah next. Meanwhile, New Zealand will be playing a couple of Tests against Sri Lanka that are a part of the World Test Championship before welcoming England during their cricketing summer in December.

 

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