ICC turns down Cricket Australia's request for a reserve day in the Women's T20 World Cup semi-finals

The ICC Women’s T20 World Cup has moved to its business end with the four semi-finalists in defending champions and hosts Australia, past editions runners-up England, 2018 semi-finalists India and South Africa making it to the top-4. 

Both the semi-finals– India vs England & South Africa vs Australia– will be played on March 05 at the Sydney Cricket Ground, but the weather forecast of persistent rain has left both England and hosts Australia with sleepless nights. If both the semi-finals are washed out, India and South Africa will directly qualify for the grand finale at the iconic Melbourne Cricket Ground as they finished at the top of the table in the group stage.

With instant elimination, courtesy a washout looming, Cricket Australia’s chief executive Kevin Roberts moved to the International Cricket Council (ICC) for scheduling reserve days for both finals and semi-finals; a request that has been turned down by the apex cricketing body, citing that no changes can be made to the playing conditions.

“We have asked the question and it’s not part of the playing conditions. I respect that because we have said the same thing in tournaments that we run in Australia,” Kevin Roberts, chief executive of Cricket Australia was qu0ted as saying by ESPNCricinfo.

“It gives you cause to reflect on how you might improve things in the future absolutely, but going into a tournament with a given set of playing conditions and rules I don’t think it’s time to tinker with that as much as with an Australian hat on I might love than that,” he added.

There are no reserve days in women’s and men’s T20 World Cup this year

In fact, the playing conditions of this tournament are such, that one needs to have a minimum of ten overs per side to constitute a match as compared to five overs per side in the normal scenario.

There is an allowance of 30 minutes of extra time allocated for the completion of each of the semi-finals, and there must also be a 30-minute gap between both the games. In the end, it will all come down to the match-referee to work out as to how, when or if the games are possible if the rain does relent.

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