The Apia Women’s Cricket League which was scheduled to be held this weekend has been cancelled due to bad weather in recent days.

Samoa International Cricket Association (S.I.C.A.) official, Perelini Mulitalo, confirmed the cancellation of the tournament at the Faleata oval.

"Yes, it has been cancelled because of the weather condition," she told the Samoa Observer. “We are prioritizing the safety of the players and also our sports equipment. 

“We cannot play in this weather, it is completely not safe for players, it will cause a lot of injuries and we can't have that.”

Mulitalo added that this is what makes cricket different from the other sporting codes, in that if there is rain the match is cancelled.

"This is what makes cricket different from other sports, other sports can still be played, even if it rains.

“But for cricket it has to stop because there are chances of players getting injured. 

“It's either the slippery of the field or the bats or even the ball can be dangerous.”

A new date has not been confirmed by the tournament organisers, though Mulitalo indicated that the return of good weather will see cricketers return.

"We will have the league once the weather is good but for now we have cancelled it for safety reasons," she said.

The Apia Women’s Cricket League is the first tournament for cricket’s governing body in the country this year.

The cancellation of cricket matches due to rain doesn’t only affect local domestic competitions, as the same rule also applies to international matches, even Cricket World Cup matches.

In a Cricket World Cup match, covers are rushed onto the field when it rains to keep the pitch dry with the players leaving while umpires wait. 

Each World Cup match is allocated eight hours from the official start time and if conditions improve within the ‘game time’, where the rain stops and the pitch remains dry, then play resumes or is started.

But if conditions don’t improve within the eight hours then the match is abandoned.