The inaugural World Test Championship final between India and New Zealand is heading towards a disappointing draw with Day 4's play being washed out due to rain. For the second time in the one-off clash, a whole day has been lost after no play was possible also on Day 1. With the weather not improving since morning at the Hampshire Bowl, the umpires took the call almost four hours and 30 minutes after the scheduled start time of 10.30 am local time (3 pm). "Day four of the #WTC21 Final has been abandoned due to persistent rain Thunder cloud and rain," read an ICC update. The fans who were patiently waiting for the play to start had to leave disappointed. "We thank our fans who turned up and kept the tempo high. See you again, tomorrow," the BCCI added.
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7:30 PM IST: Day 4 play abandoned.
7:06 PM IST: Rain continues to pound Southampton, where Test cricket was supposed to have its defining moment. And KP is not happy, like many others. And UAE seems to be the answer to all cricket worries. By the way, PSL 2021 has its first play-offs going on.
5:00 PM IST: Lunch taken.
4:43 PM IST: Early Lunch likely!
3:30 PM IST: It's still raining. New Zealand were 101 for 2 at stumps on Day 3, which too had a delayed start due to wet outfield and also ended early because of bad light. Rain had washed out the entire Day 1 and on Day 2, only 64.4 overs of play were possible with bad light prompting frequent interruptions. The ICC will have to use the reserve 'sixth day' to make up for the lost time as only 141.1 overs have been possible so far.
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2:43 PM IST: First visuals from the Rose Bowl. And it's not good. Start delayed due to rain.
