Rain in the air but forecast mostly clear for World Cup final
If heavy rain doesn't allow the match to be completed on Sunday, the final will move into the reserve day
Vishal Dikshit
01-Nov-2025 • 11 hrs ago
Laura Wolvaardt has a hit in the nets • ICC/Getty Images
A brief shower cut short South Africa's training session on Saturday night, and the Women's World Cup final on Sunday could also see some rain. The forecast, however, isn't too bleak; a washout seems unlikely.
Soon after India came out to warm up and play football around 2pm local time at the DY Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai on Saturday, it got overcast, and the covers came on as a precautionary measure, with one of the nets quickly taken down. It didn't rain then, and the players and support staff hung around near the dugout for over an hour. Some parts of the ground still looked a little damp from earlier showers, with Navi Mumbai having experienced rain through the week.
The players gradually returned to the ground just before 5pm with the nets put back up. It wasn't a full-fledged training session, with only some of the players training, and was wrapped up in an hour.
A sudden shower at the DY Patil stadium on the day before the final sends the South African team packing as they were training on the right side#CWC25 pic.twitter.com/y7awHXqu69
— Vishal Dikshit (@Vishal1686) November 1, 2025
South Africa arrived for their scheduled training around 6pm. After their nets session had gone past the two-hour mark, at around 8.15pm, a sharp, short shower sent the players scrambling back to their dugout. More than two-thirds of the ground went under covers.
On Sunday, brief showers are forecast between 1pm and 7pm, which could mean possible intermittent breaks for the final, which is scheduled to start at 3pm local time. The India vs Australia semi-final, the last game to be played in Navi Mumbai, was largely rain-free, with one short interruption after Australia captain Alyssa Healy's dismissal at the start of the sixth over of the match.
If rain doesn't allow the final to be completed on Sunday, it will move into the reserve day on Monday. As per the ICC's playing conditions, overs will first start reducing on Sunday, and efforts will be made to get a result that day itself, with each team required to have batted for at least 20 overs.
However, if play starts on Sunday but a result is not achieved on the day, play will continue on Monday from the same point where it stopped on Sunday.
Whenever the result is achieved, the ODI World Cup will have a new champion.
Vishal Dikshit is an assistant editor at ESPNcricinfo
