Reserve day in the first semi-final, there is no provision for this in India’s match, why is that so?

New Delhi. The semi-finals of the ICC T20 World Cup will be played on Thursday, June 27. Afghanistan will face South Africa in the first semi-final of the tournament, while the Indian team will face England in the second semi-final. This time the rules for both the semi-finals of the ICC T20 World Cup are different. Actually, a reserve day has been kept for the first match, while this facility will not be available in the second match.

The Super 8 matches are over and four teams are ready to play in the ICC T20 World Cup semi-finals. India, Afghanistan, South Africa and England have made it to the final four. In the first semi-final, Afghanistan will play against South Africa while in the second match, India will face England. Both the matches will be played on 27 June.

Reserve day in the first match

A reserve day has been kept for the first semi-final between South Africa and Afghanistan. If it rains during the match and the match cannot be completed even after reducing the number of overs, then it will be played on the reserve day. The match will be resumed the next day from the same place where it was stopped. 60 minutes have been kept extra in the first day’s play and 190 minutes in the reserve day. If the result of the match is not decided even on the reserve day due to rain, then South Africa will be able to make it to the finals due to being at the top of the table.

There is no reserve day in the second match

The second semi-final match is to be played between India and England. Unlike the first semi-final, no reserve day has been kept for this match. If there is a rain interruption, there will be an additional 250 minutes to complete the match. If the match is not decided due to rain, India will reach the final due to being at the top of the table.

Why was reserve day not kept?

In fact, before the Indian team reached the semi-finals, the ICC had decided that Team India will play the second semi-final irrespective of its position in the table. The reason behind this is the time difference between India and the host country. Whether India is in the first place or second, it was already decided that it will play the second semi-final. Keeping the Indian audience in mind, the ICC scheduled all its matches from 8 pm according to Indian time.

The first semi-final is to be played at 6 am according to Indian time which is not suitable for the spectators. If a reserve day was kept for the semi-final between India and England and the match was prolonged on 28 June, then the World Cup final is to be played the next day i.e. on 29 June. Whichever team reaches the final, India or England, would not get time to rest. For this reason, a reserve day was not kept for the second semi-final.

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