The India vs Pakistan clash in Colombo has withstood the political pressures, but it seems that the high-octane clash could have another disturbance incoming in the form of rain. Sri Lanka’s Department of Meteorology’s Natural Hazards Early Warning Center has issued a stark warning ahead of the India vs Pakistan match.
What does Sri Lanka’s weather department say?
In an advisorySri Lanka’s Department of Meteorology wrote, “PLEASE BE AWARE. A low-pressure area is likely to form over the southeastern Bay of Bengal around 15 February.”
Technically speaking, a low-pressure area is a spot where the atmospheric weight is lighter than the air around it. It then creates an atmospheric vacuum of sorts by pulling in moisture from the sea and forcing it upward to create dense clouds. This means that, unlike passing showers, a low-pressure area increases the chances of rain persisting.
What is the rain forecast for today?
AccuWeather predicts a 96% chance of rainfall in Colombo today. As per the hourly prediction, the chances of rainfall till 6PM are over 40% and then drop sharply to 9% thereafter. However, even with the rain easing later in the day, a wet outfield could potentially delay the start of the match or even shorten the game by a few overs.
You can checkout the hourly forecast by Accuweather below:
The good news for cricket fans is that the R. Premadasa Stadium in Colombo, where the India vs Pakistan match is being played, has very capable staff who can cover the entire outfield and get the ground match-ready in under 20 minutes once the rain stops.
Predicted XI:
With Abhishek Sharma likely back to full fitness, the left-handed batsman is expected to replace Sanju Samson in the playing XI. Meanwhile, Rinku Singh could make way for Washington Sundar on a track that is likely to favor the spinners. Another change in the Indian XI could be the inclusion of wrist-spinner Kuldeep Yadav in place of a pacer in the form of Arshdeep Singh.
Meanwhile, Pakistan, who already possess a spin-heavy lineup, are unlikely to make any big changes to the winning combination that has secured them victories against USA and Netherlands.
India:
Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan (wk), Tilak Varma, Suryakumar Yadav (c), Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Washington Sundar, Axar Patel, Arshdeep Singh, Varun Chakravarthy, Jasprit Bumrah.
Pakistan:
Saim Ayub, Sahibzada Farhan, Salman Ali Agha (c), Babar Azam, Usman Khan, Shadab Khan, Faheem Ashraf, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Salman Mirza, Abrar Ahmed, Usman Tariq
