Constant rain continued to wreak havoc at the T20 World Cup with the highly anticipated clash between defending champions Australia and consensus title challengers England being abandoned without a ball being bowled at the MCG.
The rain had earlier forced the abandonment of the first fixture of the day between Ireland and Afghanistan on the same ground as well.
With one point awarded to each team, England moves to second on the Group 1 table behind New Zealand based on the net run rate while Australia is fourth behind Ireland with all teams tied on points with three each.
Australia came into the contest after an impressive win over Sri Lanka helped them recover from the opening-day loss while England was on a one-game losing skid after their unexpected loss against Ireland.
A loss for either side would have dealt a serious blow to each team’s chances of reaching the semifinals.
Australia and England had provided plenty of fireworks prior to the World Cup in a three-match series that saw the visitors triumph without a loss, setting up the dramatic scenario for the all-important game which never came to be due to rain.
The balance now shifts towards Australia with the hosts playing Ireland and Afghanistan in their next two fixtures whereas England will have to deal with New Zealand and Sri Lanka to make the final four of the T20 World Cup.
