Match abandoned without a ball bowled (No toss)
16:32 Local Time, 11:32 GMT, 17:02 IST: That's it. Match abandoned - but quite like we started, another two days to actually have some cricket is nothing when seen in the context of having waited for ten long years. The ground took a bad beating, and even when it stopped raining, the way the groundsmen were walking around gingerly gave out what was to come. It was fun bringing you these rain updates, and until Sunday, with hopefully some actual commentary to type, ta ta!!
16:00 Local Time, 11:00 GMT, 16:30 IST: The cut-off time for a 20-over-contest is 20:00 local and we've already starting losing overs. Live pictures are quite a spoilsport - a slight drizzle, disinterested looking groundsmen, lots of water.
15:44 Local Time, 10:44 GMT, 16:14 IST: Okay, the groundsmen are on the puddles-turned-ponds in the outfield. There's some action going around, and with no further rain and hopefully some sun, you never know ..
15:31 Local Time, 10:31 GMT, 16:01 IST: It has stopped raining completely. The groundsmen, though, aren't motivated yet to start their mopping duties. We're told the drains in the stadium are clogged.
Sohail Manzoor: It's really frustrating. I think the whole of 2019 belongs to rain. Hopefully, we get to see some cricket today.
Ali Abbas: This is the biggest (return) moment of cricket for this nation and it is put off by rain. Hopefully we get to see a bit of cricket played today.
14:53 Local Time, 09:53 GMT, 15:23 IST: Things have reduced to a very slight drizzle now, as the Pakistani players lurk around in the balcony. Again, let's not get too ahead of ourselves, let's not confuse optimism with stupidity.
14:39 Local Time, 09:39 GMT, 15:09 IST: So here's how the ground looks -- The pitch, the square and the practice wickets by the boundary have been taken care off with sheets. The rest of the ground is a deluge. These September rains aren't what Karachi, or for that matter the Indian sub-continent, is used to. Alas .. you've never heard of global warming by any chance, have you?!
14:30 local: The toss is officially postponed. And even if it stops raining immediately (which ain't happening), the groundsmen will have massive puddles to clean out before we could even think of starting.
You cannot look beyond the SLC to Pakistan for a better example of current day loyalty. So what if the team's ranking points go for a toss, thanks to ten otherwise regulars opting out, they're happy to show their solidarity for the bigger cause, the cause of Pakistan having their home back.
14:14 Local Time, 09:14 GMT, 14:44 IST: Okay, it clearly isn't starting on time, but for some reason, Google's weather forecast shows a lesser-than-two-percent chance of rain, NOW.
1400 hours local: In cricketing equivalents, ten years is an entire generation. From a time when Mohammad Amir hadn't even made his debut to now a time when he's grown so old that he's burnt himself out to even retire from a format, Karachi has waited long enough. And it's Pakistan's old soul, the ODIs that return to what's been a breeding ground for the big runs in the '90s and the '00s. But, but, in all the excitement and the security, how's this for a start -- it's raining, and has been all night. Well, they've waited ten years. Surely they can wait a few more hours to get going ..
Preview:
Pakistan have travelled. They have won. They have lost. They have unearthed potentially one of their best-ever ODI batsmen in Babar Azam. They have enjoyed a Champions Trophy winning regime under Sarfaraz Ahmed and Mickey Arthur. They have endured a World Cup floundering regime under Sarfaraz Ahmed and Mickey Arthur. Now they have a new coach, who's also the new chief selector, who's also Misbah-ul-Haq. Nothing is the same from the last time they played an ODI here. It never is with Pakistan. And yet, they're back home. Cricket's greatest nomads needn't be nomads at all - at least this once.
Following a security assurance, that needed a reassurance after 10 Sri Lankan players pulled out, Pakistan's first ODI assignment at home (minus the 'adopted' prefix) in over four years will finally see the light of day on Friday (September 27). Captain Sarfaraz Ahmed has already called this the highlight of his career. Babar Azam has recalled watching big crowds on TV as he was growing up. Misbah-ul-Haq has laid bare his emotions on being the only one to bookend the 10-year time lapse of Karachi's ODI exile. So just another bilateral series? A whole country of fans disagrees.
This new dawn for Pakistan cricket begins with a reinforcement of faith in Sarfaraz Ahmed, who was retained as captain based on the recommendations of Misbah and the PCB Cricket Committee, despite the failure to qualify for the World Cup semifinals. It also begins without their pace sensation Shaheen Afridi - out with a bout of dengue. Shoaib Malik had bowed out during the previous sunset, while Mohammad Nawaz, Iftikhar Ahmed and Mohammad Rizwan are making their returns. Pakistan would've been favourites to start with anyway. They didn't need the rain check from Sri Lanka's most prominent players. Now, they're overwhelming favourites against a 'B' team of an international team that's not very good to begin with.
Indeed, Sri Lanka's drying stocks of talent have been strained to the hilt in putting together a team after most of their first choices backed out. That there are 14 players of international experience, a lot of whom aren't regulars, is itself indicative of the major problem in Sri Lankan cricket - of players unable to solidify themselves at the highest level. Here's another opportunity to do just that.
Sri Lanka were poor at the World Cup. They were poor the year before the World Cup. They were poor the year before that year. And so on. They did start better after the World Cup, blanking Bangladesh 3-0 at home. But without the players who did most of that work, can they sustain not being very poor very often?
What: Pakistan vs Sri Lanka, 1st ODI
Where: National Stadium, Karachi
When: Friday, September 27 (3pm local)
Team news:
Pakistan: The home team start without their pace sensation Shaheen Afridi who's out with a bout of dengue. Shoaib Malik is now retired. Mohammad Nawaz, Iftikhar Ahmed and Mohammad Rizwan are making their returns though.
Squad: Sarfaraz Ahmed (c), Babar Azam, Abid Ali, Asif Ali, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Sohail, Mohammad Hasnain, Iftikhar Ahmed, Imad Wasim, Imam-ul-Haq, Mohammad Amir, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Rizwan, Shadab Khan, Usman Khan Shinwari, Wahab Riaz
Sri Lanka: Even after 10 players pulled out, surprisingly there's only one uncapped player in the form of 24-year-old left-handed batsman Minod Bhanuka. The series is an opportunity to Sri Lanka to see what lies behind the obvious pool of players, and see what needs mending and to what extent.
Squad: Lahiru Thirimanne (c), Danushka Gunathilaka, Sadeera Samarawickrama, Avishka Fernando, Oshada Fernando, Shehan Jayasuriya, Dasun Shanaka, Minod Bhanuka, Angelo Perera, Wanindu Hasaranga, Lakshan Sandakan, Nuwan Pradeep, Isuru Udana, Kasun Rajitha, Lahiru Kumara
Did you know:
This will be the first ODI at National Stadium in Karachi since the same two sides met here in January 2009, ten years ago.
Only four players from the current squad have previously played an ODI in Pakistan - captain Sarfaraz Ahmed, Wahab Riaz, Haris Sohail, and Babar Azam.
Pakistan has dominated Sri Lanka in the recent past winning nine of the last 11 matches between the two teams including all of the last six.
What they said:
"It is very disappointing to play 'home' matches in other countries. It is always a privilege for us to play cricket in front of our home crowd so we all are ecstatic to have this opportunity." - Fakhar Zaman
Teams:
Pakistan Squad: Fakhar Zaman, Imam-ul-Haq, Babar Azam, Haris Sohail, Sarfaraz Ahmed(w/c), Asif Ali, Imad Wasim, Shadab Khan, Wahab Riaz, Mohammad Amir, Mohammad Hasnain, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Rizwan, Usman Shinwari, Iftikhar Ahmed, Abid Ali
Sri Lanka Squad: Lahiru Thirimanne(c), Danushka Gunathilaka, Avishka Fernando, Sadeera Samarawickrama(w), Shehan Jayasuriya, Dasun Shanaka, Wanindu Hasaranga, Isuru Udana, Nuwan Pradeep, Kasun Rajitha, Lakshan Sandakan, Oshada Fernando, Angelo Perera, Minod Bhanuka, Lahiru Kumara