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High risk of rain in marquee India vs Pakistan T20 World Cup game in Colombo
Two days out from a will-they-won’t-they India vs Pakistan contest, the weather in Colombo has largely been clear. But the Sri Lanka Department of Meteorology has warned of a low-pressure system developing in the Bay of Bengal, which indicates a high risk of rain that could disrupt the marquee World Cup game on Sunday evening.
The weather forecast for Sunday in the Khettarama area of Colombo, where the R Premadasa Stadium is located, shows warm and humid conditions to start the day, with temperatures peaking around 30° to 31°C. However, scattered thunderstorms are predicted throughout the afternoon, with a 50-70% chance of rain.
With the game set to begin at 7pm local time, some models suggest heavy thundershowers in the hours before the scheduled start, which might lead to a delayed toss, or a shortened game. While clouds are expected to linger, some forecasts indicate a slight clearing trend after 8pm, though isolated showers remain possible through the night.
The Premadasa, however, features a sophisticated drainage system and specialised ground staff protocols designed to handle Colombo’s tropical downpours. And unlike many international venues that only cover the pitch, the Premadasa has enough covers to protect the entire playing area. This prevents the outfield from soaking up water in the first place.
The staff also manually push water from one cover to the next until it reaches the perimeter drains. This method is often faster and more effective than using mechanical super soppers. Under standard conditions, the ground typically becomes fit for play within 45 to 60 minutes after heavy rain stops.
There’s also some rain expected the day before, on Saturday, which could disrupt India’s scheduled training session at the ground.
The weather in Colombo has otherwise been largely dry, making any rain unseasonal for this time of the year. So far, none of the matches in Sri Lanka of this T20 World Cup has been impacted by inclement weather, even though there have been a few close calls – such as Sri Lanka’s match against Oman, where rain was predicted but fell hours after the match ended.
Both India and Pakistan, meanwhile, currently have four points each after playing two games. But India are ahead in Group A due to a superior net run rate of 3.050 to Pakistan’s 0.932. If rain in Colombo forces a washout, both sides will get one point each as there is no reserve day for group-stage matches.
[Cricinfo]
During an operation conducted in the dark hours of 11 Mar 26, the Sri Lanka Navy seized an Indian fishing boat and apprehended 02 Indian fishermen while they were poaching in Sri Lankan waters, in the sea area North of Mannar.
The North Central Naval Command spotted a group of Indian fishing boats engaging in illegal fishing, trespassing into Sri Lankan waters. In response, naval craft of the North Central Naval Command were deployed to drive away those Indian fishing boats from island waters off Mannar.
The seized boat (01) and Indian fishermen (02) were handed over to the Fisheries Inspector of Kilinochchi for onward legal proceedings.
The bodies of 84 Iranian sailors killed in a torpedo attack by a US submarine last week in the Indian Ocean are due to be flown home on Friday, Sri Lanka’s defence ministry has said.
The seamen were among 130 thought to be aboard the Iranian warship, the Iris Dena, when it was sunk on 4 March about 40km (25 miles) from Sri Lanka’s southern coastline.
A police escort transferred bodies to Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport on Friday morning for the repatriation to Iran, after they were stored in two freezers at Galle National Hospital.
Sri Lanka said 32 sailors rescued by its navy after the torpedo attack “will remain in Sri Lanka”, according to news agency AFP.
A magistrate in the Sri Lankan city of Galle ordered that the 84 bodies should be released to the Iranian embassy.
US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said shortly after the sinking that the Iranian warship had died a “quiet death”.
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said the US had “perpetrated an atrocity at sea, 2,000 miles away from Iran’s shores”, adding that “the US will come to bitterly regret precedent it has set”.
Video released by the US Department of Defense after the incident showed a ship being struck, causing the stern to rise up before exploding.
The Iris Dena had been returning from a military exercise hosted by India when it was attacked.
Its sinking in international waters came during the current US-Israeli war with Iran and marked a dramatic widening of the conflict.
Iran has since launched retaliatory strikes across the Middle East – targeting Gulf countries allied with the US.
Four of six members of a US military refueling aircraft’s crew have been confirmed dead after it crashed in western Iraq, US Central Command (Centcom) says.
Rescue efforts continue after the loss of the KC-135, it said, having earlier said neither hostile nor friendly fire were involved in the downing of the aircraft.
The tanker had been involved in ongoing US operations against Iran and was one of two aircraft involved in the incident. The second landed safely.
The Boeing-manufactured aircraft are capable of refueling planes midair and typically play a major role in US military operations. They were used extensively in the first Gulf War to extend the range of fighter jets and bombers.
Centcom said the incident occurred around 14:00 ET (19:00 GMT) on Thursday and that the circumstances of the crash were now under investigation.
The US military command unit added that the identities of the personnel who had been killed were being withheld for 24 hours so their next of kin could be notified.
The KC-135 usually has a crew of at least a pilot, a co-pilot and a boom operator responsible for controlling the refuelling arm of the aircraft.
Centcom earlier described the crash as happening over friendly airspace – but this is a region of Iraq where pro-Iranian militias operate. Iran’s military claimed on state TV that an allied group had targeted the plane with a missile.
Thursday’s crash brings the official US military death toll in the US-Israel war with Iran, which began a fortnight ago, to 11.
The US military has now lost at least four aircraft during the current war.
Earlier this month, three F15s were shot down in “an apparent friendly fire incident” over Kuwait, officials said. All six crew members were able to safely eject.
Boeing manufactured the KC-135 Stratotanker for the US military in the 1950s and early 1960s.
It has been a backbone to the US military’s air refuelling fleet, and allow combat aircraft to carry out longer missions without needing to land.
[BBC]
Navy seizes an Indian fishing boat poaching in Mannar seas
Bodies of 84 Iranian sailors killed in US torpedo strike to be repatriated
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