Eden Gardens, Kolkata Pitch Report & Weather Forecast For SA vs AUS ICC ODI World Cup 2023 Semi-Final

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Eden Gardens in Kolkata will stage it's fifth and final match of the ongoing ICC World Cup 2023 on Thursday (November 16) when heavyweights South Africa and Australia clash in the second semi-final of the show-piece tournament.

Temba Bavuma's South Africa head into the match on the back of their seventh win in the tournament, while Pat Cummins' Australia, who will aim to repeat 1999 and 2007 feat, also come into the match on a similar record, but have registered seven successive wins.

The Proteas chased down 245 with 5 wickets in hand and 2.3 overs to spare against Afghanistan on a little challenging surface at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. This was after they were bundled for 83 by India on a tough wicket at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata.

Australia, on the other hand, successfully chased down a target of 307 with 8 wickets and 5.2 overs to spare against Bangladesh on a batting friendly surface at the MCA Stadium in Pune. The Australian team will be playing for the first time in Kolkata in the World Cup 2023.

Now, Australia and South Africa will meet in Kolkata for the first time with a fresh sporting wicket likely to be used for the match. There have already been few rain affected matches in the ongoing World Cup with the same situation likely to be the case in Kolkata on November 16.

With some parts of India witnessing showers due to the retreating monsoon, here is a look at the Kolkata weather forecast and the Eden Gardens pitch report for SA vs AUS World Cup 2023 semifinal match:

Kolkata Weather Forecast on November 16

According to AccuWeather, there is no threat of rain in Kolkata on Thursday (November 16) or in the lead up to match. They forecast a day of clouds and sun with temperature at a high of 25° C reducing to 23° C at the closing stages.

Weather Channel, however, predicts 30-60 percent chance of rain with temperature expected to range from 24° C to 26° C. So, weather is likely to interrupt proceedings on Thursday (November 16), but according to the weather.com most part of the match can be played at the iconic venue.

Rain Prediction for Kolkata on November 16: There is 30 percent chance of rain in the day and 60 percent chance in the night. Weather.com forecasts showers from 8:30 PM Local Time and is expected to spill into the next day. So, rain may not entirely wash out the match at the Eden Gardens.

Should rain affect play, there is a reserve day in store on November 17. But the conditions seem to be worse on the reserve day, which is likely to see more percentage of showers.

With rain expected, dew is unlikely be a factor in Kolkata, but wet outfield could cause trouble in gripping the ball if there is a long spell of shower leading to stoppage in play. Then, how is the Eden Gardens pitch going to play?

Eden Gardens pitch report for SA vs AUS World Cup 2023 Semi-Final

Four pitches of the nine strips have been selected by the ICC to host the five ICC World Cup 2023 matches, including the semifinal, in Eden Gardens in Kolkata. All the wickets at the venue have been prepared using black cotton soil, which helps retain the bounce.

The most recent games at the venue have seen a mixture of results with two ending in favour of the team batting first and the other in favour of the team chasing. All three matches have been played on different wickets that have assisted the quick bowlers in the early stages.

In the first World Cup 2023 match at the venue, an all round bowling effort from Bangladesh had restricted Netherlands to 229, but the Dutch pacers dominated proceedings under lights to bundle out the Tigers for a paltry 142 to seal an 87-run victory.

The second game at the venue saw Pakistan's pace battery bundle out Bangladesh for 204 before Fakhar Zaman returned in style to make short work of the run chase by taking the opposition pace attack on in the powerplay.

In the third match, India posted a good total of 326 on a challenging wicket before the bowling unit led by spinner Ravindra Jadeja returned to bundle out South Africa for 83, while England defended a total of 337 against Pakistan, who folded for 244 in the chase.

The average first innings score in the 35 ODIs hosted by the venue is 240. Over the years, the teams batting first have had the advantage with spinners using the slowing surface as the game progresses. But recently even the quicks have found joy bowling under lights.

Dew is likely to be a factor if there is no rain, but sporting tracks have been prepared to stop one-sided matches. On a fresh wicket, the captains will be tempted to bat second despite the batting side's struggle in the most recent run chase. But as it's a knock out, teams will look to add runs on the board.