The inaugural World Test Championship final is all set to take place between India and New Zealand on June 18 at the Ageas Bowl in Southampton.
The weather, though, is a reason to worry. With rain forecast on all six days (including the reserve day) it could force the two captains Virat Kohli of India and Kane Williamson of New Zealand to share the inaugural ICC WTC trophy.
Weather report
As per the weather report, there are 61% chances of rain on day 1 of the Test match. Things can change from Day 2 onwards, even though the weather would be cloudy. The chances of rain go down drastically to 25%. But it is expected that the weather will become clearer as the game progresses.
Reserve day
Nonetheless, ICC has a reserved day (on 23 June) in case a Day’s play is washed out due to rain. But the thing to keep in mind is that reserve day has been kept only in the event of lost time and not to get a result.
“The reserve day has been scheduled to ensure five full days of play, and it will only be used if lost playing time cannot be recovered through the normal provisions of making up lost time each day. There will be no additional day’s play if a positive result is not achieved after five full days of play and the match will be declared a draw in such a scenario.” Statement from ICC.
In case of a draw or a tie
And If the match does end up in a draw, India and New Zealand will end up as joint winners, the International Cricket Council announced.
“The playing conditions confirm that a draw or a tie will see both teams crowned as joint winners as well as the allocation of a reserve day to make up for any lost time during the regular days of the Final — scheduled to be played from 18 to 22 June, with 23 June set aside as the Reserve Day. Both of these decisions were made in June 2018, prior to the commencement of the ICC World Test Championship,” said a statement from ICC.