Live England vs India, second Test day five: heavy showers postpone start
Rob Bagchi live updates. Nick Hoult Chief Cricket Correspondent. Will Macpherson Cricket News Correspondent. Scyld Berry Chief Cricket Writer. Tim Wigmore Deputy Cricket Correspondent, at Edgbaston
06 July 2025 11:42am
11:41AM
Some rain delay reading
John 'Fingers' Fingleton, picturesque MCC stalwart who waged war on declining standards at Lord's
John Fingleton, who has died aged 76, was a stockbroker, public relations consultant and charity auctioneer – but through being photographed frequently, he was best known as the perceived personification of a Marylebone Cricket Club member.
A sizeable man who wore a carnation and, sometimes, sported a bushy beard, he was dressed unsparingly in the vivid egg-and-bacon colours of the most famous of sporting institutions.
'Fingers' belonged to 14 clubs and would also dress in their colours. As he occupied a prime seat in front of the Long Room in the Lord's pavilion, he would frequently be to the fore on television when the players were coming on and off the field. He was a member of MCC for 57 years, often jousting with the committee over the running of the club. He deplored any declining standards in dress, behaviour, seating and food.
11:34AM
Problematic puddles
The sky is now as bright as it's been all day. In fact, I can see a bit of blue up there.
The covers are being peeled back, but there's big puddles that will need blotting. There's more rain forecast between 12 and 1, so I suspect we won't see any cricket until about 1.30pm. But let's see.
11:31AM
It has stopped raining
But no start time yet. And there won't be for some time. India will start losing overs at noon. If we say 14 an hour, say if they start at 2pm they would have 70 overs though, as Will says, bad light might then come into it though they could, in theory, play until 7.30pm.
11:24AM
Rain continues to fall
But nothing like it was earlier and the SuperSoppas are sweeping the covers. Mark Butcher reports that the outfield is very wet and the ground staff pessimistic about getting play started quickly once it stops. But the forecast for the afternoon is fair. My friend was drenched en route to the ground and is taking refuge in a cafe in Canon Hill Park, planning to hunker down for at least an hour.
11:08AM
Mopping up underway – brighter later
It's a bit lighter now, and there's a vague mop-up going on while the rain still falls. There was a funny moment yesterday where Harry Brook asked Shubman Gill if he'd seen the forecast. This rain is obviously bad news for India, but tactically it might mean that they don't get much of a look at a second new ball. It's 64 overs away, so they would probably get a few overs with it, but not many.
11:03AM
Seems to have stopped raining
The supersoppa is on the outfield behind Paul Newman, Cameron Ponsonby, Mark Butcher and Michael Atherton who are enjoying a roundtable on Sky with untouched croissants as props.
Serious rain now and the big covers coming on.. so a delayed start on the cards. pic.twitter.com/4Inm91OJnX
— PRAKASH WAKANKAR (@pakwakankar) July 6, 2025
10:53AM
Two-session day?
Already huge puddles on the outfield. Small lakes. If the apps are right we will probably lose the morning session here.
☔️ pic.twitter.com/dr6yQgPRLX
— Sky Sports Cricket (@SkyCricket) July 6, 2025
10:48AM
It's black over Bill's mother's
The rain has arrived! It's absolutely pelting down.
10:44AM
My memory of the Eden Park 2013 rearguard is Monty Panesar almost run out in the final over going for a quick single…But actually what stands out is the fact that after the game Andy Flower would not let the media talk to Matt Prior after his heroic blocking. The media officer at the time whisked Prior into a side room so we could talk to him without the paranoid head coach noticing. It was a sign the Flower regime did not have long to go. To be fair to Andy, the pressure was getting to him after the KP texting affair and he now admits he made some mistakes in how he handled that and the fall out. He's a good man, and an excellent coach. The England job gets to everyone eventually.
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