| Venue: Stade de Bordeaux, Bordeaux Date: Sunday, 10 Sept Kick-off: 20:00 BST |
| Coverage: Live BBC Radio Wales, BBC Radio Cymru, BBC Radio 5 Live, BBC Sounds, BBC Sport website & app; live text commentary on BBC Sport website & app. |
World Cup fever has struck Bordeaux and Wales’ defining day has arrived.
The city has been dominated by red and green jerseys to mark the double-header at the Stade de Bordeaux on the opening weekend of the tournament.
Ireland’s comfortable victory over Romania was the warm-up act to the main event of Wales and Fiji’s Pool C Sunday showdown.
That will be the view of the thousands of Welsh fans who have travelled here, maybe more in hope than expectation following a troubled year for Welsh rugby.
Wales have waited for their moment to arrive but it is finally time for the burning questions to be answered in the Bordeaux heat.
Is the world-class Taulupe Faletau match-fit? Will Wales’ brutal training camps pay dividends? Has Warren Gatland returned to revitalise his adopted nation during a second stint in charge and, will his prediction of an “under the radar” side achieving “something special” in France materialise?
There are also lingering question marks about the opposition. Will they maintain the discipline and continue the set-piece improvement to go alongside their traditional Fijian flair?
Are Fiji favourites against a tier one nation like Wales after rising above them and Pool C rivals Australia in the world rankings?
There have also been accounts of Fiji’s famous World Cup win over Wales in Nantes in 2007, the last time the two sides faced each other in France. Sixteen years ago, that was the final group game that saw Wales knocked out of the tournament.
This time the nations meet in a contest which could prove just as pivotal in a pool that also includes Australia, Georgia and Portugal.
It has been a long time since Wales have had such a critical World Cup opening game, where the result…
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