CHRIS DHAMBARAGE
COLOMBO – Weather could play spoilsport in the much-anticipated 2023 Asia Cup Cricket Tournament limited overs clash between arch-rivals India and Pakistan, scheduled to get underway at the Pallekele Stadium in Kandy on Saturday.
According to most weather apps, the chances of rain during this high-profile encounter between the Asian rivals are more than 90 percent.
There is also a possibility of thunderstorms, which is an added concern. There was no rain on the morning of the match, though, raising hopes of a full game.
India and Pakistan will share a point each if their Asia Cup 2023 match in Pallekele is washed out on Saturday.
Pakistan will thereby qualify for the Super Fours stage of the tournament while India will need to avoid defeat against Nepal to make it to the next round.
India and Pakistan have not faced each other in a One-Day International (ODI) since their showdown at the 2019 ICC Cricket World Cup in England, where India thrashed Pakistan by 89 runs.
Despite the excitement surrounding this clash, there’s an ominous threat looming over the event – the possibility of rain. The weather report has raised concerns, leaving fans and players anxiously keeping an eye on the skies.
The covers are being added everyone in a while and a local expert said light drizzle is riskier than a heavy shower. It may stay on for a long time, he feared.
The squads
India: Rohit Sharma (Captain), Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, K. L. Rahul, Shubman Gill, Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, Ishan Kishan, Hardik Pandya (vc), Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammad Shami, Mohammed Siraj, Kuldeep Yadav, Prasidh Krishna and Sanju Samson.
Pakistan: Babar Azam (Captain), Abdullah Shafique, Fakhar Zaman, Imam-ul-Haq, Salman Ali Agha, Iftikhar Ahmed, Mohammad Rizwan, Mohammad Haris, Shadab Khan, Mohammad Nawaz, Usama Mir, Faheem Ashraf, Haris Rauf, Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Naseem Shah, Shaheen Afridi, Saud Shakeel and Tayyab Tahir.
