GREATER NOIDA: The first day’s play of the one-off Test between Afgha­nistan and New Zealand was called off Monday with­out the toss due to earlier rain creating a wet outfield.

The toss is scheduled for 9:00am (03:30 GMT) on Tuesday, day two of the five-day contest, and officials aim to get 98 overs in during the day.

Umpires made repeated inspections throughout Monday at Afghanistan’s adopted home ground near the Indian capital New Delhi at Greater Noida, the first Test at the venue.

The ground staff worked overtime to clear wet pat­ches at the ground, which witnessed bright sun­shine for a large part of the day.

But the area has been hit by heavy rain over the past 10 days. Several practice sessions were cancelled for both teams ahead of the game.

Afghanistan’s Ibrahim Zadran injured his ankle on the eve of the Test while fielding at a wet patch on the outfield.

Afghanistan has hosted several T20 and ODI internationals since 2017 at the venue, which lacks world-class facilities.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has offered Afghanistan venues to train in and host matches outside their troubled nation, including in the northern Indian cities of Lucknow and Dehradun.

It is only Afghanistan’s 10th Test match. The minnows have played nine matches, and lost six — including their bruising introduction when they lost the debut match against India inside two days.

After this, Tim Sout­hee’s New Zealand will tour Sri Lanka for a two-Test series, then return to India for three five-day matches.

Published in Dawn, September 10th, 2024