 "Afghanistan vs New Zealand Test likely to be called off without a toss")
The one-off Test match between Afghanistan and New Zealand at Sahid Vijay Singh Pathik Stadium is on the verge of being called off without a toss, as no play has been possible in the first three days due to persistent rain and waterlogged conditions.
On the first two days, match officials waited until the evening before calling off the days' play. However, on the third day, they abandoned play at 9 AM IST after heavy rain caused waterlogging in parts of the field.
Given the continued poor weather, officials did not delay in deciding there would be no play on Wednesday.
"Afghanistan versus New Zealand Day 3 is called off due to persistent rains. The match will commence with 98 overs from tomorrow (Day 4) if the skies clear," the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) said in a statement.
Afghanistan, who rarely get the opportunity to face top cricketing nations, are hosting the match.
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Why the AFG vs NZ test is on the brink of being called off?
Despite some sunshine on the first two days, the ground conditions at the Greater Noida Stadium did not improve enough to allow play to begin. Following a heavy downpour on Wednesday (September 11), it seems unlikely that the groundsmen will be able to prepare the field in time for Day 4.
Although Afghanistan officials were optimistic about getting the ground ready on Tuesday, the heavy rain on Day 3 worsened the conditions significantly, making the prospect of further play even more remote.
"We had conducted a recce four to six months back, and even the visiting team had done its recce. So there was no issue. The standard checklist was healthy, and everything was fine. It is because of the rain. Yesterday (September 9) also, it rained heavily. We had a three-day game here with one of the local teams which went well. We didn’t face any issues. But when the rain started, all of this happened," said Menhajuddin Raz, ACB’s international cricket manager told reporters on September 10.