The pitch curator at Abu Dhabi's Sheikh Zayed Stadium passed away on Sunday, Abu Dhabi Cricket (ADC) said in a statement.

According to India Today, the cause of Mohan Singh's death remains unknown. The paper quoted a source as saying that Singh had made the pitch for the important Super 12 match between New Zealand and Afghanistan on Sunday.

CricBuzz reported that local police had initiated an investigation into the death of the head curator, who died hours before the match.

Paying tribute to Singh, the ADC said the official played a “pivotal role in all of the venue’s success during” his 15 years working there.

“Sunday’s ICC Men’s T20 World Cup Super 12 game between New Zealand and Afghanistan went ahead as scheduled, with the support of Mohan's family and our ground staff. Tributes to Mohan and his incredible achievements will be honoured in the coming days,” the statement added.

India eliminated from contest

New Zealand reached the Twenty20 World Cup semi-finals with a comfortable eight-wicket win over Afghanistan, a result that eliminated India from the contest.

Chasing a modest 125, skipper Kane Williamson (40) and Devon Conway (36) put on an unbeaten stand of 68 to drive the team home in 18.1 overs in Abu Dhabi.

The Kiwis join Pakistan as the two teams in the semi-finals from Group 2 with eight points each, leaving India's final match against Namibia on Monday a dead rubber.