Birmingham woke to rain on Sunday, the final day of the India-England fifth day. The BBC weather forecast said that light showers were expected till noon, delaying the start of the game. However after lunch the weather was said to be relatively clear and normal service would resume at Edgbaston. For the later part of the day, the Test is expected to be played under cloudy or sunny skies.
Needing 536-runs to win on the final day, England’s chances of winning the Test are virtually non-existent. On the face of it, the rain interruption might seem to be favouring the home team but that is not the case. The rainy start to the day will help the Indian pacers when the play commences.
FOLLOW | INDIA VS ENGLAND 2ND TEST DAY 5 LIVE UPDATES
It will come in handy as they look to take 7 wickets to win the game. Moisture in the air and the sweating on the pitch, after the covers are taken off, will add some life to the pitch.
As has been the pattern of play in this series, the bowlers are most effective when the ball is new. Having already bowled 16 overs, India still can expect the ball to swing and seam for an hour or so. Bowling under cloud cover and moisture in the air, pacers Akash Deep and Mohammed Siraj can fancy their chances of getting the wickets of overnight England batsman Harry Brook and Ollie Pope early.
England don’t bat too deep as was evident from the first innings. Wicket-keeper Jamie Smith, and to some extent Chris Woakes, can be expected to score runs or stick around. But after the long tail starts. Though, there is one favour that the rain can do to England. For a team that insist they always play to win, the time lost because of rain would give them an excuse to play out a draw.
