Sports

IIE DIGITAL DESK ; Dharamshala, June 13: The fear that cricket fans had been anticipating has finally started to become a reality as persistent rain continues to pour over Dharamshala, putting the start of the India versus Afghanistan ODI match under serious threat. Due to the continuous rainfall, the scheduled toss at 1 PM Indian time could not take place as planned. Only a handful of spectators have reached the stadium so far, with fans standing under umbrellas and eagerly waiting for the weather to improve and the match to begin. At this moment, the biggest question remains when, or even whether, play can start.

The three-match One-Day International series between India national cricket team and Afghanistan national cricket team begins on June 13, marking the start of Team India’s preparations for the 2027 ODI World Cup. Earlier, India had dominated Afghanistan in the one-off Test match, securing a massive victory by an innings and 300 runs. Therefore, supporters were expecting another commanding and one-sided performance from the Indian team in the ODI series as well.

The opening ODI is being played at the picturesque Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium in Himachal Pradesh. However, the weather has emerged as the biggest concern before the match. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) had issued a yellow alert for Dharamshala on June 13, increasing concerns over possible interruptions due to rain.

The weather department has issued a yellow alert for Dharamshala from June 13 to June 16, while an orange alert was also in place for June 12. The first ODI between India and Afghanistan was scheduled to begin at 1:30 PM IST, with the toss set for 1 PM. However, the continuous rainfall has already disrupted the scheduled proceedings.

The weather forecasting agency AccuWeather, Dharamshala was expected to receive around a 90 percent chance of rainfall during the daytime on June 13. Although the possibility of rain was expected to decrease in the evening, it remained close to 65 percent, suggesting that weather could continue to interfere with the match. There remains a strong possibility of reduced overs or even a complete washout if the rain does not stop.

The temperature in Dharamshala on the day is expected to remain between 12 and 18 degrees Celsius, adding to the challenging conditions. With dark clouds hovering over the stadium and rain refusing to relent, players, officials and thousands of cricket fans are now waiting anxiously to see whether the opening match of the much-anticipated ODI series can finally get underway.