New Zealand vs Pakistan 3rd T20I halted due to sun!

The third T20I between New Zealand and Pakistan at the McLean Park in Napier came to an abrupt halt during the 12 over as the Kiwi duo of Devon Conway and Glenn Phillips struggled to see the ball as the sunset over the stadium.

Phillips was heard saying to the on-field umpire that seeing Pakistan bowler Haris Rauf’s slower ball was tough due to the awkward light angle of the sun.

Phillips during the brief halt said that it wasn’t the best of time to lose a wicket because of the sunlight while adding they want to continue the momentum after the play resumes.

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“For me, that was a little big niggly and for me and Dev starting to get underway, I didn’t think it was a great time to lose a wicket because of the sun,” Phillips told the Spark Sport broadcast during the brief break.

“We don’t like to make excuses, but for us in this situation of the game, we’d rather keep our momentum going. That’s a big positive we’ve managed to get off for a little bit.

“Now we’ve got to start again and see what the next over presents.”

Notably, it is not the first time play has been stopped due to sunlight position at the McLean Park in Napier. In January 2019, the ODI match between New Zealand and India suffered a half for more than half an hour due to the same reason.

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In 2017, a T20I match between New Zealand and Bangladesh also suffered a similar fate while there have been constant breaks in play during domestic matches in Napier.

The tricky awkward angle of the sunset at McLean Park is due to the pitches being at an east-west alignment while most of the cricket venues around the world have pitches running north and south.

“There is a precedence set at this ground as well. It’s not like they’re doing something crazy,” former Kiwi batsman Mark Richardson said in commentary.

“What happens, you can see the McLean Park stand where it’s got ‘McLean Park’ written on it. The sun comes down and it’s just sitting above the stand on the roof, but it also drops down and it starts shining at a lower level through the windows at the back of the stand – and that can cause some major issues as well. It’s a quirk of this ground.”

Richardson added that the venue staff can put an end to the persisting issue by adding a massive portable object to block the sunlight.

“I’m sorry I’ve got to say – I know it’s a quirk and I know you can’t do much with the sun – but there really should’ve been something (done) to manage this, a structure added on in the knowledge they’re going to get these night games here at McLean Park,” Richardson said.

“They should’ve done something about it, they had time to do it.”

Meanwhile, Pakistan are on the verge of winning the final T20I and end the series on a high after losing the first two T20Is against New Zealand. The two sides will then lock horns in a two-match Test series starting from December 26.