6 instances when rain affected a team's chances at an ICC tournament

LONDON, ENGLAND - JUNE 05:  Groundstaff pull the covers on as rain delays play during the ICC Champions Trophy match between Australia and Bangladesh at The Kia Oval on June 5, 2017 in London, England.  (Photo by Jordan Mansfield/Getty Images)
So far, two matches have bee washed out in this year’s Champions Trophy

The 2017 Champions Trophy is close to completing its first week and so far, we already have a semi-finalist in hosts England courtesy of their 87-run win over New Zealand at Cardiff last night. However, the tournament has not been very exciting as three matches have been hit by rain with two matches being abandoned, thus depriving New Zealand and Australia victories over Australia and Bangladesh respectively.

With New Zealand losing against England and their match against Australia (where they were looking in good nick) being washed out, their chances of making the semi-final have taken a big hit as they would now have to defeat Bangladesh and hope that England defeats Australia in their final group game.

Over the years, there have been a number of instances when rainfall affected a team’s chances at an ICC tournament. Here are six such instances.

#6 West Indies at the 2003 World Cup

Rain denied West Indies an easy win over Bangladesh at the 2003 World Cup

West Indies began their 2003 World Cup campaign with a surprising three-run win over hosts South Africa in the tournament opener. However, the Windies lost their second game against New Zealand by 20 runs but they had a chance to make up for that as they were up against underdogs Bangladesh who were unable to defeat even Canada.

West Indies scored 244/9 from their 50 overs thanks to Ricardo Powell’s quick 50 from just 31 deliveries. In reply, Bangladesh were struggling right from the beginning as they lost openers Ehsanul Haque and Al Sahariar within the first seven overs.

When Bangladesh were 32/2 in 8.1 overs, rain interrupted play and it never stopped raining which led to the match being abandoned and both teams being awarded two points each. The Windies bowling attack which consisted of the likes of Mervyn Dillon and Vasbert Drakes could have easily taken down the Bangladesh batting and won them the match.

Had they won the match, the men from the Carribean could have been on the same number of points with New Zealand and Kenya at the end of the group stage which would result in them qualifying for the Super Sixes and Kenya being eliminated by virtue of an inferior net run rate.

#5 New Zealand at the 2013 Champions Trophy

New Zealand’s washed out game against Australia eventually cost them a place in the semi-finals at the 2013 CT

New Zealand made a winning start to their Champions Trophy campaign in 2013 as they somehow managed to edge past Sri Lanka by one wicket in what was a low-scoring thriller which amassed a total of 277 runs.

In their second group game, the Kiwis were up against Australia at Edgbaston. Adam Voges’ 71 from 76 deliveries and skipper George Bailey’s patient 55 from 91 deliveries took Australia to a total of 243/8 in their 50 overs.

In reply, New Zealand lost openers Martin Guptill and Luke Ronchi early but Kane Williamson and Ross Taylor batted carefully, taking calculated risks and the Kiwis were 51/2 after 15 overs. At this point, rain took centre-stage and after nearly three hours of rain, the match got abandoned and both teams were awarded a point each.

Had the match not been washed out, New Zealand could have chased down the total as they had enough depth in their batting lineup with the likes of Brendon McCullum and James Franklin yet to come.

The washout cost New Zealand dear as they lost to England by 10 runs in their final group game and with Sri Lanka beating Australia, New Zealand were out and Sri Lanka were through to the semi-finals.

#4 Ireland at the 2010 World T20

Rain played a crucial role in England winning the 2010 World T20

Both England and Ireland had a losing start to their 2010 ICC World T20 campaign as both teams lost to hosts West Indies and would now lock horns against one another in a winner-takes-it-all match at Guyana.

England batted first and were soon down in the trenches at 49/4. However, Eoin Morgan’s 45 and Luke Wright’s 20 helped the Three Lions to 120/8 in their 20 overs. In reply, Ireland lost Paul Stirling early but Niall O’Brien came in and struck two boundaries before rain halted play with Ireland’s score being 14/1 in 3.3 overs.

Ireland already had William Porterfield and Niall O’Brien at the crease with the likes of Kevin O’Brien, Alex Cusack, Trent Johnston, and Gary Wilson yet to come one wouldn’t put it past the men in green to chase down the paltry target. Had Ireland chased down the target, they would have qualified for the Super 8s but the match eventually got abandoned and England qualified at Ireland’s expense by virtue of a higher net run-rate.

England took full advantage of this lucky break as they won all of their Super 8 games and defeated Sri Lanka in the semi-finals before defeating Australia in the final to win their first ever ICC Trophy.

#3 South Africa at the 2003 World Cup

Rain and Mark Boucher’s miscalculation resulted in South Africa’s elimination from the 2003 World Cup and Shaun Pollock’s removal from captaincy

South Africa hosted the 2003 World Cup and were heavy favourites to win the tournament but they began poorly by losing to West Indies by three runs in the tournament opener. The Proteas were also dealt a huge injury blow as Jonty Rhodes was ruled out of the tournament after injuring himself during South Africa’s match against Kenya.

South Africa defeated Kenya, Bangladesh, and Canada but lost to New Zealand which meant that they would have to defeat Sri Lanka in their final group game at Durban in order to qualify for the Super 6s.

Sri Lanka batted first and Marvan Atapattu’s fabulous 124 assisted by Aravinda de Silva’s 73 took Sri Lanka to 268/9 in their 50 overs.

In reply, South Africa were off to a good start with openers Graeme Smith and Herschelle Gibbs adding 65 for the opening wicket before the former was dismissed by De Silva. Gibbs scored a well-made 73 but wickets were falling on the other end as Gary Kirsten, Jacques Kallis, and Boeta Dippenaar were dismissed cheaply.

However, the host’s batting was re-stabilized by Mark Boucher and skipper Shaun Pollock who added 63 for the sixth wicket before the latter was run out. Lance Klusener came in to join Boucher following Pollock’s dismissal.

As rain gradually began to pour in, Mark Boucher hit a massive six off Muttiah Muralitharan and just defended the following delivery thinking that South Africa had enough to qualify in case the Duckworth-Lewis Method came into the equation.

It soon began raining heavily and the play was halted. What Boucher did not know that South Africa had tied the match according to the Duckworth-Lewis Method which wasn’t enough to take them to the Super 6. At the time, South Africa needed 40 from 30 deliveries and with Boucher and the hard-hitting Klusener at the crease, they could have easily chased down had it not rained and would have qualified for the Super Sixes at the expense of Kenya.

Play did not resume and the match was tied with South Africa being eliminated.

#2 India at the 2002 Champions Trophy

Rain in both days of the final resulted in India sharing the 2002 Champions Trophy with Sri Lanka

After ending the 2000 Champions Trophy as the runners-up, India were keen to lift the trophy in Sri Lanka in 2002 and by the way India were playing, it looked like they would win the tournament.

In their opening game, India defeated Zimbabwe by 14 runs before registering a convincing win over England. At the Premadasa stadium, India chased down a total of 270 in less than 40 overs thanks to centuries from their openers Virender Sehwag and Sourav Ganguly.

In the semi-finals, India were up against South Africa and made a remarkable comeback to beat them by 10 runs.

In the final, India were up against hosts Sri Lanka who had defeated the mighty Australians in the semis. The decider saw Sri Lanka bat first after winning the toss and fifties from Sanath Jayasuriya and Kumar Sangakkara took them to a total of 244/5 in 50 overs. In reply, Virender Sehwag began steadily by smashing three boundaries and India were 14/0 in 2 overs before rain halted play. The match could not continue any further and was scheduled to be played the next day.

In the following day, Sri Lanka once again batted first and this time scored 222/7 in their 50 overs thanks to fifties from Mahela Jayawardene and Russell Arnold. In reply, India lost Dinesh Mongia early but Virender Sehwag was playing steadily, scoring 25 from 22 and India were looking well set at 38/1 in 8.4 overs before rain once again took centre-stage. Play could not resume any further and both India and Sri Lanka were declared co-champions.

Had rain not played spoilsport, then India were in a strong position to chase down Sri Lanka’s total on both occasions especially with the likes of Sehwag, Ganguly, Tendulkar, Dravid, Yuvraj, and Kaif in their arsenal.

#1 South Africa at the 1992 World Cup

South Africa 1992 World Cup
South Africa had to endure a sad ending to their fairytale return at the 1992 World Cup

South Africa came back to international cricket in 1991 after a 21-year long suspension from the sport owing to apartheid. And their first major tournament was the 1992 World Cup in Australia and New Zealand. The Proteas began the tournament well by beating Australia in their first group game but lost their following two matches against Sri Lanka and New Zealand.

However, the World Cup debutants won four of their remaining five matches to qualify for the semi-finals and were up against England. The match was held at the SCG where England batted first. And courtesy of a massive 83 from Graeme Hick, the English reached a total of 252/6 in 45 overs.

In reply, Andrew Hudson and Adrian Kuiper kept South Africa in the chase through their scores of 46 and 36. Then Jonty Rhodes came in and scored a 38-ball 43 to maintain the scoring rate for South Africa. Following Rhodes’ departure, Brian McMillan and Dave Richardson batted steadily and took South Africa to 232/6 in 42.5 overs, needing 22 to win from 13 balls.

At this point, rain interrupted play and as a result, two overs were lost with South Africa now needing 22 to win from 1 ball. Had rain not interrupted play, then South Africa could have chased down the target within 13 deliveries especially with someone like Brian McMillan at the crease. South Africa’s World Cup journey thus came to an unfortunate end and England were through to the final which they went on to lose against Pakistan.

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Edited by Staff Editor