However, even before the game started, the major concern for both players and fans was whether the India vs. Pakistan match would...
Digital Desk: India is set to take on Pakistan in a mega encounter as both teams will begin their campaign in the T20 World Cup on October 23 at the iconic Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG). Rohit Sharma and the company will be aiming for their second tournament victory by starting their campaign with a strong win over their archrivals.
However, even before the game started, the major concern for both players and fans was whether India vs. Pakistan match would even take place considering the city's prolonged period of rainy weather. Indeed, weather forecasts indicated that rain was very certain to disrupt the game, with more than a 90% likelihood of showers in the city.
This also brings up the question of how the wicket will perform during the big game. MCG's pitch curator, Michael Salvatore, has said that the wicket will remain consistent throughout the match.
"T20 wickets are usually really consistent for the whole match. So it should make for a really good game. We have brought it from our wicket nursery which is just outside the ground. It's literally 200 meters outside the ground so we can move and monitor and maintain the wickets all year around. And the wickets were installed three weeks ago," Salvatore said in an interaction with A Sports.
"So we have drop-in wickets here at the MCG. So for the cricket season, we bring the wickets in and I sit on some sand and bed in nicely. And then once cricket finishes, we have got the football stadium. We have the ability to take them out and put them up in our special week anniversary where we can look after and maintain them," he added.
In fact, it appears that the rain gods have finally smiled. According to weather forecasts, there may be a 40% probability of rain during the game. There has been no rain since the morning, but the sky is still cloudy.
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