India vs South Africa World T20 semifinal 'live' cricket coverage: Rain forecast; India have one leg in final

Rain forecast means India could advance by virtue of being group winners

India cricketer Ravichandran Ashwin gestures as he bowls in nets at a training session during the ICC World Twenty20 tournament in the Khan Saheb Osman Ali Stadium at Fatullah in Dhaka on April 2, 2014.

India could advance into the final of the ICC World Twenty20 without a ball being in the second semifinal against South Africa at the Sher-e-Bangla Stadium on Friday with the weather forecast predicting heavy rain.

Sri Lanka sailed into the World Twenty20 final after beating holders West Indies by 27 runs via the Duckworth-Lewis method in a rain-ruined contest on Thursday.

Chasing 161 for victory against the team they beat in the final of the 2012 tournament, West Indies were 80 for four in 13.5 overs when the players were forced off by a hailstorm and a wet outfield prevented any further action in the semi-final.

Sri Lanka now face the winners of Friday's game between India and South Africa in Sunday's final.

Even if a five-over per-side match is not possible, the team that is ranked higher in their respective group will be declared winner of the contest.

India have emerged as group champions, winning all their four matches in Group 2, while South Africa were second in their group with six points by virtue of three wins.

India have also replaced Sri Lanka as the top T20 side in the ICC rankings released on Wednesday.

Nonetheless, the second semifinal between unbeaten India and South Africa could also boil down to a spinners' showdown between Imran Tahir and Indian pair Amit Mishra and Ravichandran Ashwin.

Leg-spinner Mishra's nine-wicket haul in four games has been matched by off-break bowler Ashwin's seven wickets, helping India to become the only team to win all four Super-10 matches.

South Africa, branded chokers for their inability to win major titles, seem to have put the past behind them by scripting three narrow wins in Chittagong after losing their opening game to Sri Lanka by five runs.

The Proteas beat New Zealand by two runs, the Netherlands by six runs and England by three runs, giving all-rounder JP Duminy added confidence going into the second semi-final against India.

"We can take a lot of confidence from those wins," he said. "Two of those games we were not meant to win, but to win a game out of nothing is something very positive.

"India will be a huge challenge, but we are ready. Its a big game, a semi-final of a world event. It does not get bigger than this."

Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni said his team was peaking at the right time, but stressed that nothing could be taken for granted in the shortest format.

"We have to bat and bowl well again," he said. "In T20, a couple of overs can change the game so it is hard to predict how it will go."