Mumbai: India will look to carry on their formidable form, whereas New Zealand will look to gather themselves before the crucial Semi-final against India, especially after having lost three straight matches on the trot against Pakistan, England and Australia.
Although, this time also we might not be able to see a good encounter between red-hot India and stuttering New Zealand as rain is posing as a threat for the Kiwis side. A washout on the match-day and on the reserve-day would ensure India's qualification for the finals.
Weather report:
After the washout at Nottingham, another chance of washout at Manchester is likely as the British MET department have stated that rain is likely to intervene the semi-final match between India and New Zealand. There will be light showers around 10am local time.
The maximum temperature will be around 16 degree celsius while the minimum temperature will be close to 7 degree celsius. The MET department have stated that it is most likely that there might be “cloudier skies and some showery rain developing at times.”
Intriguingly, the league match between India and New Zealand was abandoned due to rain without a single ball being bowled. The MET department have stated a 50 per cent chance of rain before the match, forcing the match to be delayed by half an hour from the fixed time (10.30 am). The department also said that the black clouds might clear after 1pm.
However, this time if rain forces the match to be cancelled on Tuesday, the match can be played on the next day. A reserve day has been kept by the International Cricket Council for the knockout stages. Moreover, the weather forecast for Wednesday seems to be gloomy as the department have stated that on Wednesday also there will be "rather extensive rain" besides general overcast conditions.
However, if the match gets cancelled on Wednesday too, then, automatically India will qualify for the finals because India have more league points (15) than New Zealand (11). Having beaten Sri Lanka by seven-wickets, India finished on top after Australia lost to South Africa by 10-runs in the last group stage match.
Pitch report:
The pitch for the semi-final encounter between India and New Zealand hasn't changed, and it's likely to stay that way only. This pitch was used in the last group stage match between Australia and South Africa. And, the last group stage match was enough to determine that it was a pure batting pitch, so the team that wins the toss is more likely to bat first despite the overcast conditions.
