India will take on Pakistan in the most important game of the ICC Men's T20 World Cup, according to the ICC at least. It doesn't feel like an India-Pakistan game as there is not that much hype and excitement for the clash and partly, the ICC has to take the blame. The bizzare nature of the surfaces at the Nassau County International Cricket Stadium hasn't helped with teams struggling to chase down 100-120 scores.
Partly, because of the Indian general elections and the swearing-in ceremony of the new cabinet for the next five years. Another reason could be the pre-decided Super 8 seedings, irrespective of where teams finish, they already know who they will be facing in the second round. However, the result in the USA-Pakistan clash has provided a much-needed heft to the Sunday game and India would want to avoid any slip-ups against an unpredictable Pakistan side, who would be up for a revenge but the weather could play its part.
New York weather forecast, June 9
As per Accuweather, at the start time of the match (10:30 AM local) there is a potential threat of a thunderstorm. The radar shows a 15 per cent probability of precipitation in New York at 10 AM on Sunday and it increases to 51 per cent at 11 AM. However, it does reduce to 47, 36 and 20 per cent in the next three hours. The forecast shows it being cloudy from 12 PM onwards, hence there is hope of rain-less skies for the latter part of the match.
Even weather.com predicts scattered showers at around 10 AM but nothing after that, which means there could be a delayed start and the match could even be shortened to to rain around the start time of the highly-anticipated encounter. The game is unlikely to be washed out and the result is on the cards, even if a full 40-over match doesn't take place. The pitch has already been an issue in the tournament so far at the Nassau County Stadium and the rain might not help as it may make it even more damp. But as they say, it is what it is.
