A retiring Sophie Devine. Legends like Sri Lanka’s Chamari Athapaththu and India’s Harmanpreet Kaur captaining in their first, and potentially last, ODI World Cup.
An England side out to set right its run of underwhelming results ahead of the showpiece. An ambitious Bangladesh and Pakistan looking to punch above their weight.
Despite the many incredibly dramatic storylines on offer, it is precipitation that has ended up as the infamous top performer in the ongoing Women’s ODI World Cup.
Of the 28 games played so far, 10 were affected by rain and six washed out. There have been three times as many weather-related No Results or abandonments in this edition as in the last four combined (two of 112 fixtures).
This inadvertently worked in India’s favour.
A string of washouts in Colombo coincided with India losing three games in a row to South Africa, Australia, and England. New Zealand felt the pinch the most, with both its games on the island washed out, leading to a league-stage exit.
Pakistan’s political tensions with India necessitated a neutral venue in Colombo. But the ICC and BCCI’s decision to zero in on a city, deep into its monsoon and storm season, has raised eyebrows; so did the blanket call to host all games but one at 3 p.m. The only 11 a.m. fixture, between New Zealand and England, was scheduled to accommodate the tournament’s only double header.
“I hope in future editions, they think of playing earlier in the day. We have seen the rain at starts in the evening, so play at 10 or 11. For the game, to be scuppered by rain is a real shame for me,” a visibly annoyed Devine said after the rained-out game against Pakistan.
For Pakistan and Sri Lanka, on the other hand, this tournament was a chance to rub shoulders with the likes of England, Australia, and even India, which cannot play Pakistan in bilaterals.
“ICC must arrange good venues for World Cups because we are waiting for four years. We have not played much cricket in the recent past,” Pakistan skipper Fatima Sana lamented after being condemned to a damp farewell from the event.
October is Colombo’s wettest month, with the city seeing an average of over 350mm of rain. The 2025 edition has left Lankan shores, but the threat of rain lingers over the final week of the tournament. Thankfully, both semifinals and the final have reserve days.<drop_initial>A retiring Sophie Devine. Legends like Sri Lanka’s Chamari Athapaththu and India’s Harmanpreet Kaur captaining in their first, and potentially last, ODI World Cup.
An England side out to set right its run of underwhelming results ahead of the showpiece. An ambitious Bangladesh and Pakistan looking to punch above their weight.
Despite the many incredibly dramatic storylines on offer, it is precipitation that has ended up as the infamous top performer in the ongoing Women’s ODI World Cup.
Of the 28 games played so far, 10 were affected by rain and six washed out. There have been three times as many weather-related No Results or abandonments in this edition as in the last four combined (two of 112 fixtures).
This inadvertently worked in India’s favour.
A string of washouts in Colombo coincided with India losing three games in a row to South Africa, Australia, and England. New Zealand felt the pinch the most, with both its games on the island washed out, leading to a league-stage exit.
Pakistan’s political tensions with India necessitated a neutral venue in Colombo. But the ICC and BCCI’s decision to zero in on a city, deep into its monsoon and storm season, has raised eyebrows; so did the blanket call to host all games but one at 3 p.m. The only 11 a.m. fixture, between New Zealand and England, was scheduled to accommodate the tournament’s only double header.
“I hope in future editions, they think of playing earlier in the day. We have seen the rain at starts in the evening, so play at 10 or 11. For the game, to be scuppered by rain is a real shame for me,” a visibly annoyed Devine said after the rained-out game against Pakistan.
For Pakistan and Sri Lanka, on the other hand, this tournament was a chance to rub shoulders with the likes of England, Australia, and even India, which cannot play Pakistan in bilaterals.
“ICC must arrange good venues for World Cups because we are waiting for four years. We have not played much cricket in the recent past,” Pakistan skipper Fatima Sana lamented after being condemned to a damp farewell from the event.
October is Colombo’s wettest month, with the city seeing an average of over 350mm of rain. The 2025 edition has left Lankan shores, but the threat of rain lingers over the final week of the tournament. Thankfully, both semifinals and the final have reserve days.<drop_initial>A retiring Sophie Devine. Legends like Sri Lanka’s Chamari Athapaththu and India’s Harmanpreet Kaur captaining in their first, and potentially last, ODI World Cup.
An England side out to set right its run of underwhelming results ahead of the showpiece. An ambitious Bangladesh and Pakistan looking to punch above their weight.
Despite the many incredibly dramatic storylines on offer, it is precipitation that has ended up as the infamous top performer in the ongoing Women’s ODI World Cup.
Of the 28 games played so far, 10 were affected by rain and six washed out. There have been three times as many weather-related No Results or abandonments in this edition as in the last four combined (two of 112 fixtures).
This inadvertently worked in India’s favour.
A string of washouts in Colombo coincided with India losing three games in a row to South Africa, Australia, and England. New Zealand felt the pinch the most, with both its games on the island washed out, leading to a league-stage exit.
Pakistan’s political tensions with India necessitated a neutral venue in Colombo. But the ICC and BCCI’s decision to zero in on a city, deep into its monsoon and storm season, has raised eyebrows; so did the blanket call to host all games but one at 3 p.m. The only 11 a.m. fixture, between New Zealand and England, was scheduled to accommodate the tournament’s only double header.
“I hope in future editions, they think of playing earlier in the day. We have seen the rain at starts in the evening, so play at 10 or 11. For the game, to be scuppered by rain is a real shame for me,” a visibly annoyed Devine said after the rained-out game against Pakistan.
For Pakistan and Sri Lanka, on the other hand, this tournament was a chance to rub shoulders with the likes of England, Australia, and even India, which cannot play Pakistan in bilaterals.
“ICC must arrange good venues for World Cups because we are waiting for four years. We have not played much cricket in the recent past,” Pakistan skipper Fatima Sana lamented after being condemned to a damp farewell from the event.
October is Colombo’s wettest month, with the city seeing an average of over 350mm of rain. The 2025 edition has left Lankan shores, but the threat of rain lingers over the final week of the tournament. Thankfully, both semifinals and the final have reserve days.
