The 2022 edition of the T20 World Cup has been an interesting one. It has seen one after another some massive upsets, a few of the most thrilling games in both Round 1 and Super 12 and rain, a lot of rain. October-November is rainy-late winters in Australia before summer sets in, in early December and thankfully for the 90,000-plus fans, they evaded La Nina last Sunday, as it has been raining cats and dogs in Melbourne whole week.
The final game in Hobart between South Africa and Zimbabwe saw a high rainfall and despite the groundsmen’s best efforts and the umpires’ hesitance to stop the play, rain claimed its first victim. A couple of days later, New Zealand-Afghanistan match got washed out without a ball being bowled at the MCG and on Friday, both games were abandoned, including the marquee clash Australia-England.
The players, coaches’ and fans’ frustration has grown by leaps and bounds as many criticised ICC for scheduling matches in Australia in October-November. Former England batter Kevin Pietersen also suggested that the World Cup should have taken place in January-February, the peak summer season in Australia when the sun is shining bright. Afghanistan will be the most affected by these rains as they have had two of their games washed out without taking the field.
The fans came up with hilarious memes as one of the fans suggested that the official logo should have an umbrella over the World Cup while one suggested underwater cricket.
The Group 1 table got really exciting after three back-to-back washouts at MCG as four teams were tied on three points and it was wide open.
Thankfully for all the stakeholders involved, the forecast in Sydney, Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide in the coming days is really encouraging and the teams would want to make that final push for the semi-finals spot with the business end of the Super 12 approaching.
