Pakistan and England could become the first teams in the history of the T20 World Cup to be named co-champions with rain expected to make its presence known in Melbourne during the final.
The MCG, where the final will take place between Pakistan and England, is expected to take the full force of a deluge on Sunday with a 95% chance of rain with 15 to 20mm of it expected.
According to the rules, each side must be allowed to face 10 overs unlike in the group stages where five would have sufficed. A reserve day remains an option but the forecast for Monday is not helpful either with a 95% chance of constant rain.
In case of a washout over the two days due to rain, the T20 World Cup final will be declared a tie with the two teams being named co-champions as the organisers will not move the decider further.
The constant rain has already washed out three matches at the iconic Sydney Cricket Ground, including host Australia’s important fixture against England effectively helping knock the hosts out of the tournament while it helped Ireland claim a famous win over England after rain prematurely ended their Super 12 contest.
More than 90,000 spectators are expected to walk through the gates on Sunday, but that figure could drop considerably if the weather intervenes.
“Every effort will be made to complete the match on the scheduled day,” the T20 World Cup playing conditions state.
“Only if the minimum number of overs necessary to constitute a match cannot be bowled on the scheduled day will the match be completed on the reserve day.”
“If the final is washed out, the trophy will be shared between the two finalists”.
