There was no cricket possible across the five days, but there is plenty of cricket lined up for these two teams in the next week. Afghanistan will be travelling to Sharjah where they host South Africa for three ODIs, which begins on September 18. New Zealand will be going to Sri Lanka for a two-Test series which gets underway on September 18 as well. Those Tests will be part of the World Test Championship. We'll be live nice and early for those games, but until then, it's a goodbye from us. Take care.
9.05am And while we are on the subject of abandoned games, here's Sreshth Shah with a listicle of all the Test matches which have been washed out without a ball bowled. War and pandemics aside, there had been seven such instances before the Afghanistan-New Zealand Test in Greater Noida.
8.55am This now becomes the eighth Test in the history of cricket to be abandoned without a ball bowled. Here is the full list. The last Test with no play on all five days was in 1998 between New Zealand and India in Dunedin.
8.43am Righto, it's official. The only Test between Afghanistan and New Zealand has been washed out without a ball being bowled. "It is still raining in Greater Noida and due to frequent rains, the 5th and final day of Afghanistan vs New Zealand test has been also called off by the match officials," reads an official message from the Afghanistan Cricket Board. It is a bit of a dampener, but that's just how this Test has been throughout. While it has rained quite a bit in and around Greater Noida, chances of play, especially on the opening day were very much possible but slushy outfields and a sub-par drainage system has meant that there was no cricket for five days.
Jonno: "Have a game in the corridor of the pavillion!" Don't think the teams even reached the ground.
8.30am Daya Sagar, who has been at the venue every single day providing all the updates just informs us that the match referee Javagal Srinath just came in and assessed the conditions. The groundstaff has also started to remove the ad hoardings from around the boundary line and the broadcasters are now starting to pack up. An official line could be any moment now.
This should give a better indication of what's the current ground condition like.
Neil: "So New Zealand will have been involved in 3 of the 8 abandoned tests, and 4 of the 11 cancelled tests. Seems like we're a bit of a jinx."
8.10am Good morning. folks. Well, not really great news coming from Greater Noida, where it has rained overnight. It's a mere formality now that this only Test between Afghanistan and New Zealand will be called off. The Afghanistan Cricket Board had issued a statement late last night that the head coaches of both the teams will address the media at 9am today, which will be followed by a trophy presentation. So, it's increasingly looking like there little to no chance of play on the fifth day.
And before we sign off for the day, here's a list of matches that have been abandoned without a ball being bowled. We will be back for day five nice and early, and hope against hope that we get some play. Till then, ciao!
Abdul Majeed Co: "This test match should now be transformed into an ODI for tomorrow. Atleast a game with result would be possible. And it might also compensate somehow, the disappoinment of the fans across as well. "
Jason : "Good tight test match. Neither side has dominated the other so far."
9.30am Will there be any play on day five? The chances look extremely bleak. Here's what Andrew Leonard had to say on the broadcast right now. "The scale of rainfall has made it absolutely impossible for cricket today. We are going to come back on day five just in case, but the reality is there will be absolutely no prospect of play. We can't envisage anything else but an abandonment very early tomorrow morning. What that would mean is that it would be the eighth Test match in the history of the best part of 2500 Test matches now that will be abandoned without a single ball bowled taking all the way back to 1890. We don't want to sugarcoat anything. Tomorrow morning, we will most certainly turn up again and abandon every single aspect of this Test. There has been more than 1200 mm of rain over seven days".
Neil: "NZ should find space in our summer schedule to host a replacement test for this one in New Zealand. I'd love to see Afghanistan get an opportunity to play more test cricket."
9.20am Here's the official line from the Afghanistan Cricket Board: "The fourth day of the only Test match between Afghanistan and New Zealand teams is also not going to be played due to continued rainfall. The decision about the start of the game tomorrow morning at 8:00 will be made after the stadium assessment."
9.15am It was inevitable and the rain has won again. Day four of this Afghanistan vs New Zealand Test match has been abandoned. The rain has picked up in Greater Noida and there was no chance of play getting underway. Four days of play completely abandoned. Now we wait for tomorrow to see if there will be any play possible.
9am Righto, so what's in store today? Will have to say prospects of play beginning any time soon look bleak. The stadium manager says that because it has been raining as much around Delhi and Greater Noida, the water is seeping in from under the covers. That's been the major problem. And while most of the repair work which was being carried out the previous days is done, it is drizzling right now in Greater Noida. The weather forecast for the next couple of days isn't great, either.
Ned: "Do you know if they covered the mid wicket problem area last night?" Yes, that's been covered. Also the patches that were dug out on the third day have been filled back in.
8.45am So, what's really been the problem? Here's what our reporters Daya Sagar and Nagraj Gollapudi have found out. Several slushy pockets in the Greater Noida Sports Complex ground along with drainage that has been overwhelmed by heavy rainfall have prevented the one-off Test from taking off. The word from the broadcasters was that "the outlook is quite grim for not just today, but potentially all five days of the Test match". Daya has just informed that it has started to drizzle around the venue.
8.30am If you've not been following this (non) match so far, let's recap how the first three days went. So, right before the opening day it rained a bit, and that meant that there was no play possible on the first day despite there being bright sunshine. Play was called off around 4pm local time after around six inspections. On the second day, it was more of the same, with the Afghanistan team not even turning up to the ground. On day three, play was abandoned as early as 9.20am. Will there be any cricket today? The short answer: unlikely.
8.20am Hello, good morning everyone. We are here a little early today, but don't really have great news. It is currently not raining in Greater Noida, but Daya Sagar tells me that it rained the entire night and it is currently cloudy. That's not great news and prospects of play continue to look bleak even on the fourth day.
9.42am Before we go, though, here are a few things we learnt about this Test: the ACB were offered Kanpur and Bengaluru as venues too, but they chose Greater Noida due to its proximity to Delhi and Kabul (in comparison). The outfield at this venue is not sand-based either, so rain takes longer to dissipate from the surface. Visually, it appears there were never enough covers available to cover the whole ground, and yesterday, the BCCI arranged for the curator from Arun Jaitley Stadium, Delhi to go over and assist preparations. An extra super sopper was also arranged, but that didn't make significant difference. The ACB's commercial manager also told the media that they tried to move the Test to another venue, but at short notice, it was not possible. All the details in our in-depth story. We hope to see you tomorrow morning, for hopefully, some cricket, but don't take my word for it! Take care all.
Brendon : "Should just call the game off and allow the Blackcaps to go to Sri Lanka early because this is a total embarrassment to be honest."
Jez: "I can't recall a test being such a shambles. They should just call it off now, fly somewhere else and play a couple of ODI's so the players at least get something out of this farce." -- Today's issue is more with rain at the moment, that can happen at any venue. But yes, calling off the day this early is just a sign that the organisers don't really trust the situation to get better today. And that's a shame for fans of cricket.
9.24am: The play has been called off due to rain. We had more overnight rain in Greater Noida and it's enough to wash out the day. Daya informs us that still some part of the ground is not covered and we can see a puddle of water near the boundary. Both teams did not arrive to the venue since it has been raining. Even if it had stopped raining today, it would have taken a long time to get the ground ready given its drainage condition.
Shiva Jayaraman with the stat: The last time where the first three days of a Test were called off was in 2008 when Bangladesh hosted New Zealand in Mirpur.
Daya Sagar and Nagraj Gollapudi, our reporters, have been looking for answers on how this Test match has reached such a position. Here's what they've found out.
8.30am, day 3 Morning, folks. We are going to start the day with some bad news. It is raining right now in Greater Noida, and it had rained through the night too. So we may well be in for another full day of weather pitch watching. We saw a grass transplant, and the use of electric fans, what measures will we see taken today?
3pm: The day 2 of the one-off Test has been called off. The outfield was never deemed fit to play despite several attempts to dry to surface. The groundstaff had cut a portion of the grass from the net-practice area, and had brought that onto the ground. Many electric fans were brought in and kept face-down to dry the spot. But the umpires still felt the surface was not safe enough to play. Like day one, there was not even a drop of rain during the day but the city witnessed some overnight downpour. We have to wait for another day for the Test to begin, which is, understandably, quite frustrating for the teams having lost two entire days. The New Zealand players reached the ground only 1pm and had a practice session but that's all they could do on Tuesday.
The toss is scheduled for 9am tomorrow. Farveez Maharoof on air said "If there is no rain today then I genuinely believe we will have some play tomorrow." Well, let's hope we get some live action tomorrow. That's it from me and Sreshth today. Do join us at 8.30am local time tomorrow.
2.56pm: Looks like we may not see any action today also. The umpires have come out for the inspection. But the Afghanistan players never made it to the ground. Simon Doull on air says the outfield is definitely damp and it's the major concern despite the day being humid.
Neil: "Even if swapping the turf sorts out the water issue, surely having loose freshly laid turf in a critical part of the ground like mid-wicket is a danger to player safety. There'd be a risk of the turf moving when a fielder runs over it, twisting an ankle or knee."
Hello again. We have another 45 minutes for the next official update. Groundsmen are still seen working on the wet patches of the outfield. The Afghanistan team is yet to reach the ground.
Let's welcome Srinidhi back again.
1.50pm The New Zealand team have kept themselves busy. After arriving at the ground around 1pm, they have been doing net sessions on the single strip of pitch that's next to the match pitch. They've put a net on both sides, though, to not interfere with the groundstaff's work as they do their batting practice.
Craig : "Ok, fix the outfield and play a 3 day test match. We (NZ) have both won and lost test matches in 3 days plenty of times. The kids are in bed, and i want to watch some cricket! "
Galen: "Following on from Craig's question what would happen as far as points with an abandoned WTC match?" -- From the WTC playing conditions, "An abandoned match will be treated as a draw. But if the match is abandoned because of an unfit pitch or outfield, the home team will be penalised, and points for a win will be awarded to the visiting side."
Hefaz: "This is not fair! AFG do not get many chances to play tests and when they get, turns to be like this. This match has to be rescheduled." -- From what I understand, Afghanistan opted for this venue. They have hosted games in Dehradun and Lucknow previously too, but I guess they would've wanted to tap into the Afghan community in Delhi and Lajpat Nagar to make the atmosphere feel like a home game. Sadly, the ground has played party pooper.
Craig: "What is the story with WTC points if the match is abandoned?" -- Afghanistan (and Ireland, Zimbabwe) are not part of the WTC, among Full Members.
The latest #AskSteven column has gone live an hour ago. Why don't you feast on some trivia while we await more news...
Matt: "Attempting to relay the turf during a game feels... ambitious"
James : "One word for all this - farcical. Whilst the weather can't be controlled, the quality of grounds can. This is very poor across the board."
Sundar: "Daya, kuch tho gadbad hai. -- Haha, a classic.
Daya, our reporter from the ground, has said that the groundstaff have cut a portion of the grass from the net-practice area, and have brought that onto the ground. See for yourself!
Asanka: "They would have given a better ground to play Test cricket. This is the elite format of the game. This shouldnt be treated like this. Dissapponted."
Jack: "Why not just dump some hard compact sand and let them decide if they want to play just to put on a show? I remember they did that for a rain affected T20I in Durban if I'm not mistaken" -- I think the umpires have though of every solution possible so far in conjunction with groundstaff.
12.25pm We hear that the New Zealand team bus has arrived now. Were the players getting bored at the hotel and wanted some fresh air, or does this mean we have a realistic chance of a start today? Fingers crossed.
12pm The inspection is done, and well, we are far from being fit for cricket. The teams are still in their hotels. The two umpires came, saw what they had to see, and left. Daya says, "Both umpires took a round of the field and then went to the midwicket area where digging is still going on."
Six Sixers: "Frustrating this innit!!"
SikandarKhattak: "They should call off the match. And Ban this venue from hosting any Test cricket in future.Its a joke with Cricket fans.Like how it was a joke of having world cup matches in America."
Bev: "I remember McLean Park in Napier, NZ having similar drainage issues not that long ago. The joke was if they wanted rain in the Hawkes Bay, which is one of the sunniest areas of NZ, all you had to do was organize a Black Caps match as there were a few in a row abandoned without a ball bowled, mostly due to the drainage"
Greg: "Can both teams forfeit their 1st innings??" --- ooo, for sure, they can. There's a famous precedent of course.
11.05am Elsewhere in the world of cricket -- it was an action-packed week that ended on Sunday. Here's a lowdown on the big stories with our ace reporters.
10.30am: Daya, who is at the venue, tells me that fans have been brought in to dry the wet patches.
SmileMonkey: "Please be more descriptive, at first I literally thought that cricket fans who came to watch match were brought into ground to blow air from mouth :) "
Neil: "I know booking tests at new grounds is about increasing the viewership and growing the game, but they really need to make sure the ground is up to international standards before giving a test match. Having the groundsmen having to dig up the ground due to substandard drainage isn't a good advertisement for the ground or the game of cricket."
Dixit Bhargav: "Having travelled from Gurugram to Greater Noida this morning especially for this match, badly hoping to watch some action. "
ICYMI - Rinku Singh is set to join the India B squad while all of the India Test players picked for the series against Bangladesh, except for Sarfaraz Khan, are likely to be withdrawn from the next round of Duleep Trophy matches beginning on September 12 in Anantpur.
Visuals from Greater Noida:
Here's Srinidhi to give you some company.
Daya Sagar from the venue: The groundsmen have dug a part of the midwicket area and working there as that part is most affected. I don't know what they'll do next after digging it. There were thousands of spectators and fans yesterday but no one today. Officially, next inspection is at 12pm and the teams are still in their hotel.
David: "All these delays are frustrating."
Sean : "Watching the TV broadcast seeing clear skies but no indication of play for hours is extremely disappointing. Nearing unacceptable really. Rain alone is frustrating enough but hours of delays for a wet outfield is downright enraging and awful from a fans point of view."
sumit: "why didnt they cover the ground overnight? "
If you're joining us from NZ, here's your squad for the Women's T20 World Cup (just announced)
9.20am The midwicket area at the moment seems like a major point of concern. Don't be surprised if inspection is not for atleast an hour (or more). Feel for fans of the sport though, who would've been keen to see Afghanistan play New Zealand in a five-day Test. Hang on for more updates.
The toss is officially delayed
8.45am The toss is scheduled for 9am, and we have 98 overs earmarked today, however, that is if we start at the scheduled time of 9.30am. Will that happen in the first place though?
8.35am, day 2: Hello and welcome to the second day. It's clear skies at the moment as we hope that toss takes place at 9am. However, some overnight rain has happened, so we wait for official word. Welcome to day two of Afghanistan v New Zealand.
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4.25pm Firstly, an entire day lost means the remaining four days will have 98 overs each and an early start at 9.30am, instead of 10am. And tomorrow the toss should happen at 9am. That brings us to the next question: what's the forecast for tomorrow? For tomorrow, there's rain expected through the day, although not very heavy, so we might have some play, and humidity above 80% which won't be easy to play in. The forecast for Wednesday isn't that bad, but Thursday's is a lot worse. Anyways, let's take it one day at a time and hope that there is at least some play tomorrow. That's all from me, Vishal Dikshit, and Srinidhi Ramanujan, and do join us at 8.30am local time tomorrow for hopefully some more sunshine and some action. Ciao!
4.05pm That's all, folks. We're not going to have any play today, unfortunately. It's been called off. That's the end of a sorry day, for the ground, for Afghanistan cricket (since they're the hosts), and for cricket fans in general. There had been a lot of rain in the lead up to this Test, for over 10 days, and the groundsmen had been at it to try and get things ready on time. Ideally, we should have had some play today because it hasn't rained today at all, apart from overnight rain. Ever since broadcast started and our Hindi reporter Daya Sagar reached the ground, it was bright and sunny through the day, there was not a single cover on the ground, and the issue was always the wet outfield and the run-up area for the bowlers. It then forces us to ask what kind of preparations and drainage was there at the ground to try and get the conditions fit to play today, and if enough had also been done in the last 10-odd days. Who is accountable for this? Afghanistan anyway hardly play any Tests against such big Test nations - their next Test is against Zimbabwe - and this is a one-off Test of which one entire day has been lost despite the sun shining down on the ground. Afghanistan captain Hashmatullah Shahidi had also said yesterday that instead if playing their "home" Tests in Dehradun, Lucknow and Abu Dhabi, they'd rather have one dedicated home venue so that they can build on some kind of home advantage and try to get better in Tests, just like they have in white-ball cricket over the years. Is this the stadium they want to call their home ground? I'm not sure anymore and I'm guessing neither will be the Afghanistan team.
Here's umpire Kumar Dharmasena: "When you compare it with 10am, till now there's improvement but we're worried about five-six patches inside the 30-yard circle. One area of the run up does not look comfortable, it's a players' safety issue. We even saw one player got injured yesterday as well, we know how hard it is. Both of us are concerned."
3.40pm Thanks Srinidhi! The shadows are fading and getting longer, the sky is not blinded by the sun anymore and the activity is dying slowly at the ground. Let's see what comes out - if anything at all - of the inspection after 50 minutes. Instead, I highly recommend you to follow the Oval Test where Sri Lanka have crossed 100 in pursuit of 219, with nine wickets in hand.
"We all should watch death of England cricket in oval" Let's not get so dramatic now, Satyam
Bunty: "Don't think ACB would be ready to take the blame for the farcical situation, nor they can point fingers at BCCI for alloting such a poorly managed ground due to obvious reasons. But the accountability has to be with BCCI or UP cricket association for not having a top class facility at this venue." Accountability has to fall on someone, no doubt, but let me also remind you this ground has also hosted 11 international games before this.
abhishek: "No comments getting published? Wonder if Vishal also hopped on to the Oval drama." Hehe, shouldn't we all?
With that, I will handover to Vishal.
Saysadat: "I'm wondering if Rahmanullah Gurbaz, who traveled to the UAE from the Caribbean last night, will be part of the squad for Afghanistan's only Test match. With news circulating about Ibrahim Zadran's injury during a net session, does Gurbaz's inclusion confirm he's stepping in for this match, or is he just part of the broader team?" -- Zadran has been ruled out of the one-off Test and the following ODI series against South Africa and Afghanistan are yet to name a replacement. But I don't think Gurbaz will feature in this Test.
3.05pm: The next pitch inspection is at 4.30pm local time. Maybe the umpires are trying to get half an hour of play today?
Shantharam: "was eagerly looking forward to this match because it is expected to be an even contest. conditions favour AFG slightly but NZ is a stronger side otherwise "
As we wait for the update, head to our coverage of the third Test at The Oval where Sri Lanka are gunning for a famous win against England.
Naman: "Now it is sunny here in Greater Noida :)"
Abid : "Isn't Nortje playing in CPL? Why is he not resting now a days? " -- He is at the CPL. St Kitts & Nevis Patriots signed him up as a replacement for Nuwan Thushara.
Sam L: "With all these light & rain delays, the proposed indoor stadium in Hobart, Australia is looking like a good option for test cricket (in all seasons)" -- More details about the proposed venue at Macquarie Point here.
2.40pm: Daya informs tea has been taken now.
abhishek: "I am 20 km away from this ground. It has started raining heavily here. Dont see any chance of play today." -- Our scorer tells me that after 3pm, the last inspection will be at 4pm local time, and if the ground is not fit for play by then, they would call it off.
Meanwhile, South Africa have announced squads for their tour of UAE later this month, where they will play three ODIs against Afghanistan in Sharjah and two T20Is and three ODIs against Ireland in Abu Dhabi. They have rested several first-choice players such as Rabada, Maharaj, Nortje, Jansen, Shamsi, Miller and Klaasen.
2.30pm :Thanks, Vishal. We are half an hour away from the next inspection and I do hope we get some live action today. It's been a long wait.
Kanti : "Despite the gloomy weather, hope the players enjoyed the lunch of local cuisine and now looking forward to a High Tea."
2.25pm Keep your comments coming, people, as I handover to Srinidhi. Be nice!
Here comes another time slot: the next inspection is at 3pm. This is not looking good for the ground because there's been pretty much no rain today
Rory: "We have a nice sunny day with no play here. And at the Oval they keep going off for bad light because it is too dark in the middle of the day. Test cricket is doing its best to kill itself." Word.
Shah M: "ELYAS . Afg beat Bangladesh who badly thrashed Pakistan .so be positive"
Cheema: "@abhishek hoping for Sri Lanka to win today"
"Well, I'm off to bed. Hopefully some play is possible tomorrow. Goodnight from Te Hana, NZ" Sleep well, CJay
abhishek: "@Cheema: Right now Sri lanka is also thinking same about Oval. Hoping draining to be good and no rain. Cracking day awaits us ahead."
Abhijeet: "ICC should be extra careful while planning NZ, SA Tests, they hardly gets to play Test Cricket, no Test series of 4 or 5 Tests on Cards either."
2.05pm The groundsmen are still at it around the bowlers' run up and attending to some patches just behind square towards the pavilion, along with the fourth umpire.
ELYAS: "Don t worry cricket lovers, this match will be decided with in 3 days, as the experience NZ will out class the AFG." Well, Elyas, play needs to start first for that.
JP: "Only positive thing about all this is I have learnt a lot about Greater Noida, which as it turns out is greater than expected, but no greater than the real OG Noida. We pray for play before I lose it!" JP, have you been to Great India Place (for the others, that's a mall in Noida)?
1.55pm We're getting close to the next inspection. Don't make any plans...
Cheema: "Poor drainage. We would've been half way through the first day if this match was played in Sri Lanka."
Matt Clere: "Checking every minute for updates! Please give me cricket! Give me Southee running in or Kane softly stroking it through the covers!"
1.35pm Some bowlers are going through the drills, some clouds still hovering, some patches still not playable. And the wait continues....
shishank dahiya: "Is this a practice match since it's not counted in WTC cycle ?" Can't call it practice, it still counts as a proper Test match, But yes, it's not part of WTC
Vishal S: "I live not far from Greater Noida, and it is getting cloudier by the minute." What's even farther than Greater Noida, Vishal?
1.10pm: The sun is out (again!). Daya tells me the next inspection is at 2pm local time.
SD: "Eagerly waiting the start from New Zealand! It's been months since we've seen the black caps play"
Andrew Leonard, one of the commentators for the Test, says it will take some time to get the ground ready. "Hopefully, we will have some play on day one but not sure when."
12.50pm: We will have an update soon. Good news is that a few players are seen warming up on the field.
12pm Conditions far from ideal even without any rain, it's now overcast at the ground during the lunch break.
Fahad farooq : "I want to see Afghanistan vs Pakistan test match in india it will be fun" Fahad, which board's leg are you pulling here? :)
11.43am Daya informs early lunch has been taken now.
11.30am Just half hour to go for the scheduled lunch time and it's time for an inspection. Let's see what's the update...The next inspection is at 1pm local time. Lunch will be at 12pm as scheduled.
There was overnight rain there but hardly anything since morning, so it looks like it's the conditions and drainage that's not allowing any play. It's been pretty sunny this morning and the players have also been warming-up - right now Santner, Bracewell and Philips are practising on one of side pitch.
Abhishek: "This is a farce, Cricinfo rightly pointed out yesterday, that the ground is not ready, and the preparation is questionable. It will be an embarrassment for BCCI" BCCI is not hosting this match, though. It's the ACB, but yes the groundsmen and curators are all local.
Matt Clere: "Have the playing elevens been announced? Hope it gets dry SOON!!!!!!" Nope, no toss so no XIs yet
Meenakshi : "Why are they playing in India, Srinidhi?" Since Afghanistan can't play at home right now because of political tensions, Greater Noida is their adopted home ground for now.
Jordan: "I realised yesterday that NZ have 9 tests from now until the end of the year. As a kiwi, it feels good to see us playing so many tests, long live Test Cricket!" And six of those in Asia over the next two months
We should have an update very soon. Hang in there, people. Over to Vishal again.
11am: Half an hour before the next inspection, Daya informs me super-soppers are in action to dry out the field.
Ebadullah Shinw: "This will be a huge opportunity to Afghanistan playing New Zealand in a Test match for the first time and hopefully Afghan Boys will do better in this format as well. From the other hand, it's a good chance for the Kiwis to play a spin bowling attack who has troubled a lot of good teams including their team in T20Is."
My colleague Sreshth reminds us that today is the anniversary of Afghanistan's first Test win vs Bangladesh, in Chattogram, in 2019. In the last hour of play on a final day that was almost entirely rained out, Afghanistan took four wickets to post a 224-run victory. Captain Rashid Khan became the first player to take ten wickets and score a fifty in his first Test in charge. On the opening day, Rahmat Shah became his team's first century-maker in Tests.
Daya, from the venue, pings: "Some New Zealand players including captain Southee and vice-captain Latham were seen warming up with a rugby ball but they went back in after inspecting the outfield."
Apologies for the confusion. The next inspection is at 11.30am.
10.25am: The reporters at the ground have been told the next inspection will be at 11am (but the broadcaster says 11.30am).
Hello, everyone. We are still more than one hour away from the next inspection. In the meantime, here is something to keep you all engaged. In an interview with Nagraj Gollapudi, Tushar Deshpande, the fast bowler, talks about how he dealt with discouragement, the loss of a parent, and how his game has grown since he joined Chennai Super Kings.
10.10am The sun is out, I repeat, the sun is out but the conditions aren't great so the next inspection is at 11.30am local time. On that note, say hello to Srinidhi!
10.05am Daya Sagar informs some of the Afghanistan support staff members are out there with the fourth umpire while the groundsmen have been working non-stop in the outfield on the square sides. There are still a lot of patches in the outfield with sawdust dumped on them. The wait continues...
ICYMI - The toss is delayed because of wet outfield and there's an inspection at 10am, so the first ball is also set to be delayed.
It's sunny but it's also pretty humid out there. Farveez Maharoof informs during the pitch report that there are quite a few damp patches in the outfield which are being worked on by the groundsmen and Simon Doull adds there could be a delay by an hour or two.
9.50am It's nice and sunny so let's hope the rain stays away and we get some action soon. Until then, you can read more about how fast bowler Ben Sears has been training his mind and body to be ready for the subcontinent challenge.
9.35am We have no toss or game right now but lots of content for you. Afghanistan, for example, have been playing their "home" Tests in Dehradun, Lucknow and Abu Dhabi in recent years, and now they arrive at Greater Noida. How much does it hamper the growth of a budding Test team like Afghanistan, who have grown by leaps and bounds in white-ball cricket over the years? Here's what their captain Hashmatullah Shahidi said.
New Zealand, on the other hand, are kicked about playing six Tests over the next two months - they sometimes don't play as many in an entire season! And Kane Williamson is trying wrap his head around it.
9.15am The good news didn't last long because the toss has been delayed due to wet outfield, the next inspection will be at 10am India Time.
Our Hindi correspondent Daya Sagar has made it to the ground: There was a little rain at night but it's sunny today. Both teams are out there for some warm-ups but the outfield is still wet. The curator and groundsmen are working on the bowling run ups with the roller. There are some wet patches in the outfield they are putting sawdust on. The good thing is there are lots of spectators (in thousands) outside the stadium, waiting to enter.
9am Greetings one and all on this Monday morning (local time) for the Test debut of another ground in India, the 30th in the country and 124th around the world! It's time for the maiden Test match between New Zealand and Afghanistan in Greater Noida, close to Delhi and known for its upcoming high rises, colleges, and the only F1 track in India. This is Afghanistan's home ground so they'll be hoping they get some advantage from the conditions, and for New Zealand this is the first of six Tests they're going to play in South Asia over the next couple of months. I'm Vishal Dikshit and I'll be joined by Srinidhi soon. Here's George Binoy's preview to catch up with what all's at stake, what's the team news, and what not.
