The final of the first ever World Test Championship is finally here and cricket fans across the world couldn't be more excited. But along with the excitement, there is some tension-filled news as well, which currently is going by the term 'Southampton weather'.
Yes, this time of the year in England witnesses a lot of rainfall. Who can forget the ICC 2019 World Cup, where as many as four matches were washed out due to rain? Hence, it was always just a matter of time before rain casted its shadows on the big finale of the WTC as well.
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The weather update in Southampton, to be honest, does not look promising. Until Wednesday, the sun was out at its peak before things declined Thursday onward. Rain and overcast conditions took over on the eve of the start of the WTC final, and unfortunately, Day 1 doesn't appear too different. As per the recent weather update, rain is being predicted throughout Friday, which not only hampers the start time of the match, but also threatens to wash the entire day out. To make matters worse, it has been raining the entire day in Southampton; Kevin Pietersen taking to Twitter to post this: "World Test Championship to start in UK today & it’s hammering it down!
The ICC has done a great job to put a reserve day in place, which means that if rain does indeed play spoilsport, there is a provision to make up for lost time. A maximum of 83 overs and 330 minutes are there for the taking, with an extra one hour available if needed. But captains Kane Williamson and Virat Kohli may also mutually decide against it if there is a scenario of no likely outcome.
{{/usCountry}}The ICC has done a great job to put a reserve day in place, which means that if rain does indeed play spoilsport, there is a provision to make up for lost time. A maximum of 83 overs and 330 minutes are there for the taking, with an extra one hour available if needed. But captains Kane Williamson and Virat Kohli may also mutually decide against it if there is a scenario of no likely outcome.
{{/usCountry}}The forecast for Day 2, 3 and 4 do not look optimistic either, but the weather in England can change at the drop of a dime, it's so unpredictable.