ODI World Cup 2023: Will rain play a spoilsport in the 2nd semi-final between Australia vs South Africa?

Australia and South Africa have been a rivalry for the ages. Whenever we take the name of both these cricketing powerhouses, we think of the iconic 1999 ODI World Cup's tied semi-final and Australia proceeded to the final and went on to win the 1999 ODI World Cup causing a major heartbreak to the South African Cricket. 

That match gave birth to the iconic rivalry between these two proud cricketing which only got better with South Africa’s greatest run chase of 434 runs against Australia in cricketing history in 2006-07, which became a part of cricketing folklore. 

Today, both these strong teams will again lock horns with each other in the 2nd semi-final of the ODI World Cup 2023 at the iconic Eden Gardens in Kolkata. Both the teams have been playing remarkable cricket in the World Cup so far and will be raring to make it into the finals where they will face India at the iconic Narendra Modi Stadium.

But amid all the excitement and anticipation for the marquee match, the weather conditions are not looking great and the rain is expected to play a spoilsport in the match. According to the weather reports, there is a 50% chance of rain during the match all around Kolkata. 

However, the Apex Cricket Council has kept a reserve day for the all-important match but the weather conditions are the same on the reserve day too. The humidity is expected to reach 77 per cent in the afternoon, with a maximum temperature of 26 degrees Celsius.

So, all the cricket fans around the world, especially from Australia and South Africa will be hoping that the weather stays put on the day of the match and they get to see a complete match between the two strong teams of the World Cup.

What if the match gets washed out?

If the weather does not hold together and both the days of the match get washed, then in such an instance South Africa will qualify for the finals to compete with India for the glory because according to the tournament rules, in case the knockout match between two teams washes out then the team which was above the other one in the points table at the end of the league stage will qualify further.

South Africa finished ahead of Australia in the points table at the 2nd position even though both the teams 2 matches each because they had a better NRR than Australia. So, if the 2nd semi-final between these two teams gets washed out South Africa will qualify for the finals.