India, NZ share points after another washout
Nottingham, Jun 13: The frustrating English weather finally caught up with the Indian team as their third World Cup game against New Zealand was called off without a ball being bowled here Thursday.
New Zealand have seven points from four games while India now have five from three with the next game against Pakistan in Manchester on Sunday.
Incidentally, the weather Gods are threatening to play spoilsport over there too.
The toss was delayed due to inclement weather and in the end it never took place. An inspection was to happen at 3 pm IST, the scheduled start time, but was put off after it started raining again.
The outfield was pretty wet after heavy showers in the past two days.
The umpires had one last inspection at 7:30pm IST before taking the decision to abandon the match.
This was the fourth such game in the ongoing tournament that has not yielded any result, something that will certainly increase ICC's worry.
While both the teams share a point each, the practical difficulties of not having a reserve day as stated by the ICC CEO David Richardson is certainly leaving the fans, especially the Indians high and dry.
Indian captain Virak Kohli said it was a sensible decision to call off the match.
"Sensible decision to not play, given the outfield wasn't fully fit (sic). One point not a bad thing for sides that have won all their games so far. So we'll take it," he said.
New Zealand captain Kane Williamson said it was not an ideal situation but in a way a good chance for the players to get some rest.
"(It has) been about four days and we haven't seen the sun, so this doesn't surprise us. It's not ideal, but little bit of time off is also important. We have some break now midway through, so it's a good chance for the guys to freshen up and look forward to the next challenge," he said.
The ICC refunds tickets if a single ball is not bowled but the hundreds of fans who have bought overpriced tickets from a third party are certain to lose money.
"I have paid 800 GBP (more than 70k INR) for a ticket. I am losing a lot of money. The black market rate for a Pakistan game is 2000 GBP. I can't afford that," said a software engineer who has come all the way from Singapore.
The broadcasters, however, can heave a sigh of relief as all the matches are insured and they can make up for losses.
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Rahul Gandhi joins Haryana Congress leader's 'Sadbhav Yatra' in Gurugram
Gurugram (PTI): Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday joined the 'Sadbhav Yatra' of Haryana Congress leader Brijendra Singh here.
Gandhi, who is the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, reached Gurugram in the evening and joined the yatra. He also walked some distance with Brijendra, state Congress chief Rao Narender Singh and other leaders.
Huge crowds had turned up for the occasion.
Later, Gandhi proceeded to the venue where he addressed a public gathering.
Leader of Opposition in Haryana Bhupinder Singh Hooda and other Congress leaders, including Randeep Singh Surjewala, B K Hariprasad, state Congress chief Rao Narender Singh, were also present.
Brijendra Singh had on Thursday said it is a matter of joy for them that Gandhi was joining the 'Sadbhav Yatra' in Gurugram-Badshahpur, "thereby strengthening the Indian National Congress' campaign for brotherhood and harmony".
The 'Sadbhav Yatra' began from Danoda village at Narwana in Jind on October 5, 2025, and has covered 85 of the 90 assembly segments in the state.
The foot march was started by Brijendra Singh, son of Congress veteran Birender Singh, to highlight several national and regional issues.
State Congress chief Rao Narender Singh had asked all party leaders to take part in Friday's event.
Days before his yatra began in October, Brijendra Singh, who narrowly lost the 2024 assembly polls from Jind's Uchana Kalan, accused the ruling BJP of playing "divisive politics" and said that "sadbhav" (harmony) has come under stress in the last decade.
Brijendra Singh was a sitting MP from Hisar for the BJP when he resigned ahead of the 2024 general election and switched over to the Congress. He also alleged that the saffron party creates a wedge in society to achieve its political purpose.
The 'padyatra' has so far covered 85 assembly constituencies in Haryana, traversing more than 2,700 kilometres.
Addressing the public gathering, Brijendra Singh said the yatra is inspired by Rahul Gandhi's Bharat Jodo Yatra, where he took the party's vision and values directly to the people of the country.
Singh said the yatra has highlighted issues like "Vote Chori" (vote theft), unemployment, poor law and order situation, agrarian distress, and issues related to government employees, labourers and traders.
"Sadbhav (harmony) and bhaichara (brotherhood), which the BJP is attempting to weaken, are the messages of this yatra," he said, adding that its slogan is "Congress ka haath bhaichara ka saath".
"This yatra is a natural extension of the Bharat Jodo Yatra," Brijendra Singh said.
