England were granted a brief window of opportunity to push for a win in the fourth Ashes Test, with play starting at 2.45pm on the penultimate day at Old Trafford after rain wiped out the morning session.
By tea though, the rain returned to restrict the hosts to just 30 overs and the single wicket of Marnus Labuschagne on the day – and that after the Australia No 3 departed for an impressive century.
Where does that leave things? Well, England have Sunday to claim five wickets to win if Australia fail to add a further 61 runs; if the tourists do pass that target, England must bowl them out and knock off the required amount of runs. Even a draw would be enough for the Aussies to retain the Ashes with one match remaining.
Image: The start of play at Emirates Old Trafford was delayed until 2.45pm due to rain, while no further play was seen after 5pm as more rain fell
The other major issue to throw into the mix is that the weather outlook for Sunday isn’t great.
The latest Sky News forecast for Manchester on Sunday has the chance of rain at 91 per cent. But there will be spells of sunshine between 12pm and 8pm too.
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Watch the best of the action from day four of the fourth Ashes Test
At 2-1 down in the series following losses to the Aussies at Edgbaston and Lord’s – each coming before victory at Headingley – a dismal forecast in the north-west this weekend has led to fears England won’t have enough time to claim the wickets they need for a series-levelling victory to set up a Kia Oval decider next week.
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Overnight showers in Manchester continued into Saturday morning which shelved a scheduled 11am start time, but the rain slowed to a trickle and then stopped, allowing the ground staff to begin mopping up just before 1pm.
There were considerable puddles on the outfield but a comprehensive clean-up operation convinced the umpires at a 2pm pitch inspection that play could get under way 45 minutes later, meaning the worst fears of a total washout were avoided.
Image: Joe Root took England's only wicket on the day, as Australia moved from 113-4 to 214-5
England have seized total control of the Test to this point, with Australia beginning day four needing 162 further runs from a position of 113-4 just to make the hosts bat again, after a stunning England innings of 592.
Yet, more rain fell later on Saturday afternoon, scuppering plans for 59 overs to be bowled. It was possible for play to go on until 7.30pm, but no action was seen beyond 5pm after the delayed break for tea, with stumps confirmed at 6.27pm.
Even when there was play and England shuffled their bowlers, trying a variety of combinations and tactics, the surface and ball offered minimal assistance, with the wicket reduced to a rather docile track.
England were able to get a soggy ball changed but as they sought to reintroduce Mark Wood, the umpires deemed the gloomy skies and bad light such that the hosts would have to bowl spin if they wanted to continue.
A frustrated Ben Stokes turned to Moeen Ali and part-timer Joe Root in a bid to end an increasingly-frustrating partnership between Labuschagne and Mitchell Marsh, and eventually struck a breakthrough in the form of Labuschagne, but added no more.
Image: Ben Stokes was told by the umpires it was too dark for the likes of Mark Wood, Stuart Broad, James Anderson and Chris Woakes to continue bowling
By the time Australia headed to tea on 214-5, minus the wicket of Labuschagne (111) and with Marsh unbeaten on 31 and Green on three not out, heavy rain started to fall again and did not relent, forcing the end of play – a factor which may well prove decisive in this entire series.
Trescothick: England very confident if full day’s play | ‘We didn’t think light was bad enough to stop seamers’
England lead batting coach Marcus Trescothick said…
“It all depends on what goes on with the forecast, really. If we get a full day’s play I think we’ll be very confident in what we can try and do and push for a result.
“We weren’t expecting much play today so to get what we did was a little bit of a bonus really, to get a bit of a break in the weather. So fingers crossed, overnight and coming into tomorrow, it changes a little bit and we get a few more hours in than potentially what it’s looking like. But we’ll have to wait and see.
“Everyone’s got a different one [weather app] on their phones, or there’s lots of different ones on computers knocking around. And they’re all pretty much saying the same thing at the moment: rain, unfortunately. But we’ll wait and see.
Image: Sunday's weather forecast for Manchester is also predicting rain
“We were sat on the balcony and we didn’t think it [the light] had deteriorated that much to not allow the seamers to bowl.
“The umpires out in the middle deemed it was too dark and they’ve got to make that decision. It didn’t feel like it from where we were, but we’re 50/60 metres from the edge of the pitch.
“Tomorrow, if that’s what we’ve got, and that’s what we’re given, then that’s what we’ll take. Any opportunity that we can get out in the middle tomorrow we will be grabbing with both hands.”
“It’s pretty obvious what we’re trying to do. Without the rain being around and too much dampness, you want the ball to try and reverse on a good pitch.
“So we’ll be trying to see what we can do before we get to the new ball, as quick as possible and then see how that reacts on a day five pitch.”
Labuschagne: We have to bat out the day | ‘We’re not going to give England a sniff’
Australia batter Marnus Labuschagne said…
“As players, you’ve got to be prepared to play. And we were today, as you saw we took the game on.
“We knew the task we had, and we knew it was not going to be a massively long day necessarily, but we had to be on for that two-hour stint that we did get.
Image: Marnus Labuschagne frustrated England as he ticked along to a century from 161 deliveries
“And for us now, it’s about retaining the Ashes. This is what it comes down to. Whatever time we have left tomorrow, there’s only one option: bat out the day.
“The rain is going to play its part, but I certainly think there’ll be some sort of play tomorrow.
“We’re not going to give England a sniff. That’s exactly what they’d like.”
Watch day five live on Sky Sports Cricket on Sunday. Build-up starts at 10.15am with the first ball at 11am. Stream The Ashes and more with NOW for £21 a month.
Sourse: skysports.com
