IND vs ENG 2022: Weather update in Birmingham (July 5) as India head into Day 5
Rain wouldn't be too bad for India considering their situation as they head into Day 5 of the fifth rescheduled Test against England. Jonny Bairstow and Joe Root seemed to be at utmost ease at Edgbaston, with the hosts in an excellent position to complete their chase of 378.
With seven wickets in hand and 119 runs to go, it might all get over quickly for India if the duo continue to be in ominous form. A win for England would see the series end in a stale-mate, which Ben Stokes and co. will certainly take.
Cheteshwar Pujara and Rishabh Pant scored half-centuries earlier on Day 4 to help India end their second essay 245. Stokes' four-wicket haul was pivotal in getting his side a winning chance.
England openers Alex Lees (56) and Zak Crawley (46) then laid an excellent platform for the chase with a 107-run opening stand. This allowed Root and Bairstow to flourish in the final session as the hosts ended the day on 259/3.
Ahead of the start of Day 5 on Tuesday (July 5), we take a look at the weather report.
IND vs ENG 2022: Weather in Birmingham (July 5): No rain a bane for India?
This will come as good news for England fans as no rain has been predicted on Day 5 at Edgbaston.
Accuweather predicts cool and pleasant weather to play cricket, and this piece of news is purely dependent on perspective. If you are an Indian supporter, this might also mean a Jasprit Bumrah spell that could give his side a shot.
The temperature is likely to hover around 20 degrees, with a humidity of 100%. The skies will be clear with the cloud cover around 26% in what should be a good day for cricket.
Related: Alex Lees vs Ravindra Jadeja
Alex Lees' innings was key for England to get in the driver's seat against India. His 65-ball 56 was instrumental in setting the platform for their chase of 378.
Speaking to Sky Sports after the end of the day's play, Lees revealed that the word from the camp for left-handed batters was to attack Ravindra Jadeja. The southpaw intended to hit the left-arm tweaker for a maximum, and though he didn't, he still got enough runs off of him.
Lees said:
"For the left-handers in this team, I think is for us to have a go at the left-arm spinner. If I am honest, I wanted to hit him for six first ball but yorked myself! There is no great science. I just tried to hit the ball where the fielders weren’t."
He added:
"I just wanted to try and give it a good whack, to be honest. The backing from Ben [Stokes] and Baz [Brendon McCullum] has accelerated that aggressive intent and the manner in which I am playing. The numbers are still not where I would like them to be. I want to score big hundreds - that is my role as an opening batter."
England will begin Day 5 with Root batting on 76 and Bairstow unbeaten on 72.