By: Aditya Ahuja 

The Afghanistan-New Zealand Test match in Greater Noida on Friday became the first-ever Test in Asia to be abandoned due to rain, marking an unfortunate first in 91 years and 730 matches across the continent.

The opening day was washed out by relentless rain, and despite the ground staff’s best efforts, the outfield remained unfit for play throughout the scheduled five days. 

After repeated inspections, the match was officially called off on the morning of Day 5, leaving Afghanistan without a chance to take the field in what was their third Test match in India, following earlier Tests in Dehradun and Lucknow in 2019 against Ireland and the West Indies.

The Afghanistan Cricket Board revealed that the BCCI had offered several venue options, but Greater Noida was chosen due to its close proximity to Delhi and Kabul.

Afghanistan will now shift their focus to a three-match ODI series against South Africa in the UAE, while New Zealand will head to Sri Lanka for two Test matches before returning to India for three more Tests in October.