Afghanistan vs New Zealand highlights, Day 2 Test Match: Day has been called off due to wet outfield

“For me, I still love Test cricket. And so I am just excited to be back playing Tests after a bit of a break. With the appetite of T20s and ODIs, I would still like to think there is a lot of Test cricket to be played. (But) we will have to wait and see.”

“It is obviously a small cricketing country in terms of numbers. It will be great to have as many people as possible available for New Zealand, but the way the world is going, it is getting harder and harder. I’m sure NZC will continue to work with players to work out what’s best for both parties.”

Out of his 62 scalps, Ajaz Patel has taken 58 wickets in the sub-continent. however, he admitted that it’s frustrating how he has failed to cement the spot of his side’s leading spinner since his historic feat.

“I guess after the 10 wickets, obviously you’re a little bit disappointed because you don’t get as many opportunities but at the same time as a player, it’s still about growing your game and it’s an opportunity to develop and grow,” he said.

“It’s a tough challenge whenever you play in these parts of the world,” Kane Williamson says. “We’re absolutely going to be challenged in a number of ways. I think it’s important for us as a team to look to grow throughout, pick up the experiences that we’re going to have over the next sort of two and half months and it would be better for the team.”

Afghanistan captain Hashmatullah Shahidi was clearly not impressed with the facility. "The facility is the same the way it was 4 years ago. Everything is the same, nothing has changed," he told the reporters. 

This is the third venue where Afghanistan are hosting a Test match in India. Prior to this, they hosted Ireland and West Indies in 2019. The Ireland game was played in Dehradun, while the West Indies match was played at the Ekana Cricket Stadium in Lucknow. 

"Our first choice was the Lucknow stadium and the second was Dehradun. Our requests were rejected by the BCCI and we were told that both the states are hosting their respective T20 leagues. This was the only ground available and we had no other choice left," an ACB official told The Indian Express on condition of anonymity. 

"You won't believe me but the stadia in Afghanistan have better facilities than this one. We have improved our infrastructure in the past few years but here as Shahidi has mentioned nothing has changed."

This is the third venue where Afghanistan will be hosting a Test match at India. Prior to this, they hosted Ireland and West Indies in 2019. The Ireland game was played at Dehradun, while the West Indies game was played at the Ekana Cricket Stadium in Lucknow.

New Zealand's World Test Championship (WTC) engagements for the 2023-25 cycle will be over in December when they host England for three Test matches series. In January 2025, there will be a clash of T20 leagues as UAE’s ILT20, South Africa’s SA20, Australia’s Big Bash League and Bangladesh’s BPL are set to overlap. With an abundance of T20 leagues, the NZC could find themselves in a situation where more players opt out of central contracts for more lucrative deals.

New Zealand seamer Tim Southee on Sunday weighed in on the Fab Four debate and rated former Kiwi skipper Kane Williamson more than India’s Virat Kohli as well as Steve Smith and Joe Root.

Afghanistan’s prolific top-order batter Ibrahim Zadran has been ruled out of the upcoming one-off Test against New Zealand and the three-match ODI series against South Africa due to an ankle sprain in his left leg. 

The ACB wishes him a speedy recovery and looks forward to his return to the field soon.

"We lack experience but when it comes to taking challenges, we are a nation that does not take a step backward. We have talented players and we can do well in every department. Some of our players have hundreds in this format. It's tough, but if we play to our strength, we can beat any team"

"Conditions are foreign to what we are used to but we are excited about the chance of playing six Test matches on the bounce here in the subcontinent. It's exciting to play cricket in India, of course the weather has been the biggest challenge since we have been here and for the last few days. We are looking forward to getting out there and play Test cricket"

Riaz Hassan/Ibrahim Zadran, Abdul Malik, Hashmatullah Shahidi(c), Rahmat Shah, Bahir Shah, Ikram Alikhil (wk), Azmatullah Omarzai, Zia-ur-Rehman, Nijat Masood, Qais Ahmad, Zahir Khan

Tom Latham, Devon Conway, Kane Williamson, Rachin Ravindra, Daryl Mitchell, Tom Blundell (wk), Michael Bracewell, Mitchell Santner, Tim Southee (c), Matt Henry, Ajaz Patel

"Conditions are foreign to what we are used to but we are excited about the chance of playing six Test matches on the bounce here in the subcontinent. It's exciting to play cricket in India, of course the weather has been the biggest challenge since we have been here and for the last few days. We are looking forward to getting out there and play Test cricket"

"We lack experience but when it comes to taking challenges, we are a nation that does not take a step backward. We have talented players and we can do well in every department. Some of our players have hundreds in this format. It's tough, but if we play to our strength, we can beat any team"

ACB official speaking to media: India is our home, and when we host teams, other nations have played more cricket here. Hopefully, we will get a good venue here in India and if we restrict ourselves to one venue, it will be effective for us. If you see our records in first-class, it’s good because we play at our home ground. We know those conditions. Hopefully, in the future, there will be a time when the teams will travel to Afghanistan and our average will be higher.

Hopefully, the ACB and the BCCI will get us a good venue.

Next inspection at 3 PM informs Pratyush Raj from ground

Out of his 62 scalps, Ajaz Patel has taken 58 wickets in the sub-continent. however, he admitted that it’s frustrating how he has failed to cement the spot of his side’s leading spinner since his historic feat.

“I guess after the 10 wickets, obviously you’re a little bit disappointed because you don’t get as many opportunities but at the same time as a player, it’s still about growing your game and it’s an opportunity to develop and grow,” he said.

“If you ask all New Zealand spinners, it is difficult sometimes. Obviously you don’t get as many opportunities at home because of our home conditions,” Ajaz Patel told reporters.

“At the same time, I guess it breeds more hunger when you know conditions are spin friendly and you’re quite hungry to get out there and play and put your best foot forward and perform. But It’s really important that you prepare accordingly and prepare well. So it’s just about going into these games and really enjoying the conditions and making the most of it.”

Alyssa Healy compares Williamson and Kohli: “Williamson has carried the whole New Zealand team, whereas, for Virat, he is the greatest player in the world, let’s be real. But with him, it’s like someone else is always there. Rohit Sharma can score hundreds. KL Rahul can score a 100.”

Shahidi confident on his team: “We played one three-day game here, so we know the conditions,” he told reporters on Sunday.

“We will try to make the playing eleven according to the conditions. We want to improve in Test cricket, we accept all kinds of challenges. These are very big opportunities to show our talent – score big. If you want that, this is the place to show.”

“For me, I still love Test cricket. And so I am just excited to be back playing Tests after a bit of a break. With the appetite of T20s and ODIs, I would still like to think there is a lot of Test cricket to be played. (But) we will have to wait and see.”

Following James Anderson’s retirement, Tim Southee has played the most number of Tests among active seamers. Such longevity for a seamer in Test cricket is unsual and with 380 scalps in 100 Tests, the New Zealand captain is most likely the last among that rare breed.

“I don’t think anyone will reach the heights that Anderson has been able to reach over his career,” he says.

New Zealand's World Test Championship (WTC) engagements for the 2023-25 cycle will be over in December when they host England for three Test matches series. In January 2025, there will be a clash of T20 leagues as UAE’s ILT20, South Africa’s SA20, Australia’s Big Bash League and Bangladesh’s BPL are set to overlap. With an abundance of T20 leagues, the NZC could find themselves in a situation where more players opt out of central contracts for more lucrative deals.

Southee has managed only four wickets in the last four Tests in New Zealand against South Africa and Australia. However, Southee's best Test figures came in India when he picked up 7 for 64 at Bengaluru in 2012. He averages 28.70 in five Tests in India with 20 wickets, including two five-wicket hauls. In Asia overall, Southee averaged 26.50 and has 58 wickets to his name.

“It is tough….,” says Tim Southee on leading the side in the sub-continent. “Obviously, with six Test matches in this part of the world, we would like to think spin will play a crucial role. As a bowling unit, we got four quality pace bowlers and pace is your main threat back home. Here, it is potentially going to be spin. So it’s a challenge, especially for us because conditions are foreign.”

Afghanistan captain Shahidi said playing a three-day game at the venue has given them a little bit of an idea about what to expect but at the same time slammed the ACB and ICC for not giving Afghanistan a fixed venue, so that they can enjoy home conditions.

“India is our home, and when we host teams, other nations have played more cricket here. Hopefully, we will get a good venue here in India and if we restrict ourselves to one venue, it will be effective for us,” he said.

“Our first choice was the Lucknow stadium and the second was Dehradun. Our requests were rejected by the BCCI and we were told that both the states are hosting their respective T20 leagues. This was the only ground available and we had no other choice left,” an Afghanistan Cricket Board official told The Indian Express on condition of anonymity.

This is the third venue where Afghanistan will be hosting a Test match at India. Prior to this, they hosted Ireland and West Indies in 2019. The Ireland game was played at Dehradun, while the West Indies game was played at the Ekana Cricket Stadium in Lucknow.

This Test match doesn’t come under the World Test Championship (WTC) cycle. The Noida stadium was banned by the BCCI in 2017, the venue has come under the scanner of the anti-corruption unit of the BCCI.

Afghanistan captain Shahidi said: “The facility is the same the way it was 4 years ago. Everything is the same, nothing has changed.”

They are bringing artificial grass to fill the potholes now.

The teams are yet to arrive at this venue. Meanwhile, thee groundsmen are bringing new strips of grass to cover the muddy area: Pings Pratyush from ground

“It’s a tough challenge whenever you play in these parts of the world,” Kane Williamson says. “We’re absolutely going to be challenged in a number of ways. I think it’s important for us as a team to look to grow throughout, pick up the experiences that we’re going to have over the next sort of two and half months and it would be better for the team.”

Due to consistent rain last night, the outfield is yet again wet. It’s pretty much water logged at the sight screen.

Since making his Test debut against India in Ahmedabad back in 2010 against India, Williamson averages 48.85 in the sub-continent, which is a touch higher than Steve Smith (47.83) and Joe Root (46.86). However, Williamson feels playing in the sub-continent is always challenging.

Afghanistan’s prolific top-order batter Ibrahim Zadran has been ruled out of the upcoming one-off Test against New Zealand and the three-match ODI series against South Africa due to an ankle sprain in his left leg. 

The ACB wishes him a speedy recovery and looks forward to his return to the field soon.

Toss has been delayed on Day 2 as well. First inspection on Day will be held at 12 noon. It’s bright and sunny here but a light drizzle on Monday evening has done the trick.

"We lack experience but when it comes to taking challenges, we are a nation that does not take a step backward. We have talented players and we can do well in every department. Some of our players have hundreds in this format. It's tough, but if we play to our strength, we can beat any team"

"Conditions are foreign to what we are used to but we are excited about the chance of playing six Test matches on the bounce here in the subcontinent. It's exciting to play cricket in India, of course the weather has been the biggest challenge since we have been here and for the last few days. We are looking forward to getting out there and play Test cricket"

Riaz Hassan/Ibrahim Zadran, Abdul Malik, Hashmatullah Shahidi(c), Rahmat Shah, Bahir Shah, Ikram Alikhil (wk), Azmatullah Omarzai, Zia-ur-Rehman, Nijat Masood, Qais Ahmad, Zahir Khan

Tom Latham, Devon Conway, Kane Williamson, Rachin Ravindra, Daryl Mitchell, Tom Blundell (wk), Michael Bracewell, Mitchell Santner, Tim Southee (c), Matt Henry, Ajaz Patel

Hello and welcome to our live blog for the Day 2 of one-off Test between New Zealand and Afghanistan. We could not get any action on Day 1 due to wet patches on the ground. However, fingers crossed we will have some action today. Do stay with us to get all the live updates.