The third Test has considerable importance for both India and New Zealand, even if the series is predicted to be a dead rubber for the visitors. They are competing for vital World Test Championship points. The home team will still have a sizable fan base even though the Kiwis will have an insurmountable lead coming into the match at Wankhede Stadium.
New Zealand entered the series as the clear underdog, especially given how their series against Sri Lanka went.
However, on the opening day of the match, they came at India full force and blew them away for their lowest Test score at home. It was not to be, as the Black Caps easily won by eight wickets in their first Test victory in India since 1988, despite India’s heroic comeback in their second essay.
India was predicted to return in Pune for the series’ second Test. They actually did, too. The very first day, New Zealand was skittled for a low score. However, Mitchell Santner put on a one-man show by running through the batting lineup and giving New Zealand a commanding 103-run advantage that they were never able to overcome. An 18-series unbeaten streak in the longest format during a 12-year period came to an end as India was soundly defeated.
Here is the predicted weather on Day 1 of the third Test in Pune.
Speaking of the Mumbai Test’s weather, according to AccuWeather’s most recent statistics, there is a 65% chance of precipitation on the opening day. Temperatures are predicted to hover around the early 30° Celsius range. From 43% to 70% of the sky is covered by clouds as the day moves from morning to afternoon.
As expected, the game will begin at the regular hour. But after lunch, a halt-start pace of activities is anticipated. Thunderstorms are a real possibility starting at 2:00 pm.
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Nonetheless, as there is little to no chance of rain hindering the remaining four scheduled days, the game is expected to yield an absolute outcome. Depending on the outcome of the game, the venue should be completely crowded, except the first day of play.