Rain caused the opening ODI between England and
Ireland at Headingley to be called off without a toss, delaying Joe Root’s
attempt to regain his 50-over form ahead of next month’s World Cup.
He is not anticipated to travel with the team for the
second ODI on Saturday at Trent Bridge; instead, he is slated to relax with the
rest of the World Cup touring group. “I think he’s going to rest now until
the World Cup,” said Zak Crawley, acting captain of England. I’m not sure;
it’s his choice whether or not to have a bat.
Next Wednesday, England will depart for India, where
they will compete in exhibition matches against Bangladesh and India in
Guwahati before moving on to Ahmedabad in preparation for their World Cup debut
against New Zealand on October 5. Root is expected to begin the competition at
No. 3 and will be favoured to regain the form that allowed him to complete the
previous tournament as their top run-scorer.
The original 12pm toss was postponed due to rain
showers, however by 1.30pm, all for a small sprinkle at around 2.15pm, the rain
had mostly stopped. The ground was constantly inspected by the umpires, however
a wet patch at the Kirkstall Lane End takeoff area rendered the surface
unusable.
“I was very disappointed that we didn’t get a
game on,” Crawley said. “It was just the run-up at this end, really.
It wasn’t fit for play, and I think that was probably right in the end. It was
very wet and would have churned up if we’d played on it. It wouldn’t have been
fit for the bowlers.”
“It was covered up, the bit that was wet,”
Crawley added. “This time of year, it doesn’t dry as well as at other
times of the year. We were unlucky with the weather leading into the game and
then [there was] rain all this morning as well. I’m not sure there’s any more
the groundsmen could have done: they worked very hard to try and get the game
on.”
Yorkshire confirmed that all ticket-buyers will be
refunded in full.