Why isn't one-off Test match between Afghanistan and New Zealand part of WTC?

The one-off Test match between Afghanistan and New Zealand was scheduled to start on September 9 in Noida. However, day one was called off due to a wet outfield, which wasn't safe for the players. It had rained for consecutive weeks, which caused the outfield to be wet around the 30-yard circle. If the entire match gets abandoned due to rain, the trophy will be divided and won't affect the WTC 2025 points table.

But the main question is, why wouldn't the WTC points be affected? Well, the answer is quite simple. Even though Afghanistan have become a Test-playing nation, they still aren't included in the WTC cycle because they don't play many Test matches in a year. Hence, ICC haven't included them in the World Test Championship (WTC) cycle. This is the first time New Zealand will play against Afghanistan in a Test set-up and the players were pretty excited for that.

Also Read: Why was there no play on Day 1 of AFG vs NZ 1st Test despite no rain?

However, the ground situation doesn't look good for the players to have a game. Additionally, the umpires had decided to increase the game's time by 30 minutes from day two but for that, the match had to commence. Due to the lack of Test cricket facilities in Afghanistan and the ongoing unrest in the country, India came forward to help out the nation and hosted the one-off Test match. 

New Zealand to visit India to play Test series

The Black Caps are set to play back-to-back Test series in the WTC cycle including a series in India. They'll travel to India in October to play the red-ball series. Hence, the Afghanistan match would have been a good opportunity for the Kiwis to get a hang of the atmosphere and the environment in India. 

There will be three Test matches played between India and New Zealand starting on October 16, in Bengaluru. The last game will be played in Mumbai, on November 1. This series comes under the WTC 2025 cycle and will turn out to be an important game since India are in the first place and the Kiwis are in the third.