New Delhi:
For a couple of days, Bristol was pounded with rain. The weather forecast for the game between Pakistan and Sri Lanka at the County Ground was not looking all that great with 91 per cent chances of rain. The forecast proved to be true. The rain lashed Bristol for close to three hours. The rain cleared and there were two inspections. However, damp patches on the outfield resulted in the match being abandoned without even the toss taking place and both Pakistan and Sri Lanka getting one point each. In a strange twist of fate, these were the first points for Sri Lanka in a World Cup encounter against Pakistan, having lost all previous seven encounters.
Before the start of the match, the teams had not left the team hotel as the rain lashed down. There was a yellow alert for heavy rain in the area. However, the steady rain eased to a drizzle and the sun broke through. The umpires had scheduled an inspection at 14:30 hrs local time but they went back and announced that a second inspection was scheduled at 15:15 hrs local.
When the second inspection concluded, the umpires and the match referee Andy Pycroft had an intense meeting about the state of the outfield. The umpires were concerned about a big patch on the outfield and despite the sun breaking through the clouds, the outfield was not safe enough for play to begin. 20 minutes after the meeting concluded, the decision was made to abandon the match.
With this result, Sri Lanka has moved to the third spot with three points from three games while Pakistan is in the fourth spot with the same tally of points but with a poor net run-rate due to their heavy loss to the West Indies in their opening game in Trent Bridge.
Pakistan will take on Australia in a crucial clash at Taunton on June 12 while Sri Lanka faces a massive challenge against a confident Bangladesh side in Bristol on June 11. The next match of the ICC Cricket World Cup features hosts England, smarting from their 14-run defeat against Pakistan, taking on Bangladesh in Cardiff on Saturday. The second game features Afghanistan taking on New Zealand in Taunton.
