The third one-day international between India and New Zealand was abandoned without a ball being bowled at Seddon Park in Hamilton on Tuesday, after persistent rain made play impossible and handed the tourists an unassailable 2-0 lead in the five-match series. The washout also ended New Zealand's streak of eleven consecutive home bilateral ODI series victories, a run stretching back to 2019 and the second-longest such streak in men's ODI history.
Rain had threatened the contest from the outset, with the forecast predicting a 90% chance of showers throughout the day in Hamilton. The toss, originally scheduled for 2:30pm local time, was delayed by more than two hours because of a wet outfield, and when it finally took place the match had been reduced to a 40-overs-a-side contest. India captain Shubman Gill won the toss for the third successive match in the series and elected to bowl first.
But the showers kept returning, and after several ground inspections by the umpires, the match was called off at around 6:45pm local time, with roughly 70 minutes still remaining before the 7:50pm cut-off for a 20-overs-a-side game. The outfield was simply too wet, and the umpires decided there was no realistic prospect of play.
The result means India cannot now lose the series, whatever happens in the remaining two matches. The worst the visitors can manage is a 2-2 draw, while a victory in either of the final two games will seal the series outright. It is a significant achievement for India, who were looking to seal a rare series win in New Zealand, a country where they have historically struggled in bilateral ODI contests.
Rain has played a part in all three matches of the series so far. India won the rain-affected opener by five wickets, and took the second match under the Duckworth-Lewis-Stern method as well, reaching 113 for 7 when rain stopped play, four runs ahead of the DLS par score. The Hamilton washout was therefore the third successive game in which the weather, rather than the cricket, shaped the outcome.
Both teams now travel to Mount Maunganui, where the final two ODIs will be played on November 13 and 15. The change of venue brings a change of personnel too: Gill and wicketkeeper-batter KL Rahul are set to leave the squad to prepare for the upcoming Test series, with Shreyas Iyer expected to captain India for the remaining two one-dayers in Tauranga.
For New Zealand, the abandonment was a bitter outcome on a day when they needed a win to keep the series alive. The home side had won their last eleven bilateral ODI series on home soil, a record built over seven years, and that run is now over without a ball being bowled in the match that ended it. The Black Caps will instead aim to salvage pride and restore some momentum in the final two games.
The series forms part of a long tour for India, who had already won the preceding Twenty20 series 3-2 before the one-dayers began. The tour continues with a two-Test World Test Championship series beginning on November 19, for which India have decided to retain three fast bowlers in New Zealand to assist preparations.
Weather disruptions are a familiar feature of cricket in New Zealand at this time of year, and the Hamilton washout will renew debate about scheduling. Day-night matches in the New Zealand spring are always vulnerable to rain, and with the series now effectively decided, the final two games in Mount Maunganui carry rather less tension than the tour's organisers would have hoped for.
Even so, there is plenty still at stake. India will want to convert their unassailable lead into an outright series victory, New Zealand will want to avoid a home series defeat, and both sides will use the matches to settle selections ahead of the Test series. For the moment, though, the story of the day belongs to the rain — and to an Indian side that leaves Hamilton with the series already safe in their hands.
