Everyone’s a winner if the La Niña weather phenomenon that has disrupted the T20 World Cup returns to wash out this weekend’s final.
While the sport itself would be robbed of one of its marquee fixtures, a return of Melbourne’s spring rain raises the prospect of a cricket first: joint World Cup champions.
Tournament organisers are holding their breath the wet weather that has plagued the tournament will not affect the final, but the forecast is bleak.
There is a distinct likelihood of play on Sunday being washed out, with the Bureau of Meteorology forecasting possible heavy falls, the chance of a thunderstorm and up to 25 mm of rain. The outlook is marginally better for the reserve day Monday with a 95 per cent probability of rain and the chance of a thunderstorm.
MCG curator Matt Page confers with umpires at the MCG during the washed out game between Australia and England.Credit:Getty Images
The International Cricket Council’s has extra time regulations which allow for two hours of extra time for the reserve day, theoretically reducing the likelihood of the weather clearing after the game is called off.
Under tournament playing conditions, if the final is abandoned, no result is possible or if a Super Over cannot be completed after a tie, “the teams shall be declared joint winners”.
It would be a hollow victory should it occur though some may deem such a scenario more palatable than one where the champion is decided by Super 12 placings – as was the case for the semi-finals.
In another demonstration of the quirks in cricket rules, the final could be reduced to as short as a 10-overs-a-side game, even if the reserve day is activated in the case of rain. In the semis and final, both teams must bat for a minimum of 10 overs to constitute a game.
Whether a match has resumed in the revised conditions is the key in determining how the game would continue on Monday at the scheduled start time of 3pm.
If a ball has been bowled under the shortened overs it would resume with the same number of overs if no further play is lost. If not, it would continue at the original 20 overs per side, weather permitting.
It seems counterintuitive that such an important game of cricket could be shortened despite the provision of a reserve day, but the preference is for the game to be concluded on its scheduled day.
“If the reserve day is allocated, every effort will be made to complete the match on the scheduled day with any necessary reduction in overs taking place and only if the minimum number of overs necessary to constitute a match cannot be bowled on the scheduled day will the match be completed on the reserve day,” the playing conditions say.
“If the match has started on the scheduled day and overs are subsequently reduced following an interruption, but no further play is possible, the match will resume on the reserve day at the point where the last ball was played.”
The 2019 World Cup semi-final between New Zealand and India was played across two days with the Kiwis resuming on the second day in the 47th over and both teams allotted the full 50 overs each.
Three matches have been abandoned without a ball bowled this tournament, and a further three decided by the Duckworth/Lewis system.
Previously, the 2002 Champions Trophy tournament finished with shared winners after Sri Lanka and India made the final in Colombo, but the final couldn’t be completed in the two days allocated to it due to rain.
