1.57pm The match is abandoned. Bangladesh and Sri Lanka will split points for this one, as 2019 becomes the World Cup with the most abandoned games. Just to explain the distinction between 'Abandoned' and 'No Result', let me quote Varun Shetty here: "A match is called Abandoned if no toss happens - today will be the second instance in this World Cup, making it the highest number of abandoned games in a WC. A match that has had a toss and then doesn't get completed due to rain gets a No Result - there has only been one of those in this World Cup. The record is two, shared between '92 and '03"
So this is how the points table will look after this match. You suspect, of the two teams, Bangladesh is the one likelier to view this as a point dropped rather than one point gained
Sri Lanka play Australia next at The Oval on Saturday, while Bangladesh get almost a week off before meeting West Indies at Taunton on Monday. Hope you had fun following the rain updates with Peter Della Penna and myself. Hope to have your company again right here on ESPNcricinfo for Australia v West Indies tomorrow. Goodbye for now
1.48pm Isam says the umpires are walking out in the rain. They are struggling to get through to the centre. They are now having a chat with the ground staff. The discussion is over, says Isam, and the ground staff are walking off too now
Nitish R: "I would argue that this is all nicely falling into the hands of SA.They are trailing behind, but the rain is ensuring that their opponents also do not run away a big lead in the points table. Now all they have to do is win all their remaining five games. Easy peasy !!" --- Assuming none of those matches get affected by the rain
"SL could possibly use the split point. But my only problem is that SL will not have played a game in over 12 days before the Australia game. It'll definitely affect them, since they are still looking for form as a team and get used to absorbing the pressure, " muses UJack
1.39pm Ok, brace yourselves. Andrew Fernando now says, "Rain has only got harder. I think an announcement soon, probably"
Tim Scales: "Following from Norwich which, whilst not exotic, is A Fine City. I'm going to the Sri Lanka vs Australia game on Saturday. If the weather isn't as bad as this, what advice would you give for crowd catches? I'm worried I'll fumble it if one comes my way and we've seen some spectacular drops in the stands this World Cup! " --- The oldest advice in the book; Keep your eyes on the ball all the way. If it still spills out, it was never meant to be. Hope you have fun, Tim!
Rafi: "ICC should not held any worldcup in England atleast before 2060. This much gap is what England deserves because of weather there. " --- Wondering what we would have as a planet (and the sport of cricket) by then...
1.32pm No change in situation. Still raining steadily in Bristol. Mel Jones tells us on the broadcast that the forecast is also pretty grim. No decision on calling the game off has been taken yet, thankfully
Ali: "Wondering how the reporters and analysts think about a washed out game. Yes, the fans and players will be disappointed, but how do you feel as a sports' reporter and a commentator here? I've a habit of reading Cricinfo articles before matches on the analyses made after, and I appreciate how passionately the media is involved in sports. I'm an ordinary fan, and I'm sad. Are you more sad than I am?" --- I can speak for myself. While I enjoy the conversations here, I would much rather commentate on an actual game, even if it is rain-shortened. That said, our job here is to report facts dispassionately. And fact is, we don't have any cricket yet :)
Yami: "Send of those rain cloud to Dubai please we can afford them ;). We need to make a contract with God of thunder "
1.07pm A glimmer of hope, perhaps, from Mohammad Isam from the ground, "Only a drizzle"
Khandaker Talha: ""Rimjhim Gire Sawan Sulag Sulag Jaaye Mann" sung by Kishore Kumar is an all time favorite rain song. " --- Speaking of sawan (monsoon) and the like, Sreshth gives me one dubious distinction this World Cup could end up having today. No World Cup before 2019 has had any more than two matches abandoned due to weather... Sreshth and Deepti tell me these editions have been in 1992, 1999 and 2003
yabi: "How come no one is talking about "Let it rain over me" by Pitbull? Yeah that's my favorite rain song." --- It could turn out to be an excellent jinx, actually
For those asking about whether spectators will get a refund for the game today should it get abandoned, Paul Muchmore tells me this, "(a) 15 overs or less because of adverse weather conditions - a full refund; (b) 15.1 overs to 29.5 overs because of adverse weather conditions - a 50% refund"
Samrat Ahuja: "Dekho Baarish Ho Rahi Hain, is my favorite rain song!! Quite appropriate in this context, because the first line is followed by Mera Dil Ro Raha hain!! Translation in English : Its raining, and my heart is crying!!"
Vibhor Agarwal: "@Basit - I think the issue is primarily with a wet pitch. Also, the cricket ball doesn't do well when it is wet as it becomes heavier. Baseball, the closest sport to cricket, does stop when it rains (if that is any consolation)"
Bimal Sinha: "According to Bristol weather forecasts, rain will minimize by 1 pm but will resume by 5 pm. Can we have a game in 2 hours? Assuming it takes 1 hour to prepare the pitch." --- It is 1.20pm already, so that reduces the window further. If we assume four minutes per over and a ten-minute break in between, what we probably need as a bare minimum is 170 minutes. Or 10 minutes short of three hours
Karl: "@Bazit Azeem, Not true, Tennis and Golf as well. The main thing is safety of Players. When the pich gets wet it is slippery and not safe for bowler to bowl on. " --- Ah yes, of course. I remember a golf event in India some years ago that I was covering as producer with cameraman Taqi Raza (who recently captured the live pictures of Virat Kohli urging Indian fans to behave themselves better) where the second round was cut short by some crazy rain. Those shots we captured were really dramatic, with some of the slimmer golfers looking like they might fly off before they reach the club house
Meanwhile, Shashank Kishore has an interesting gif, that we at ESPNcricinfo are calling 'The Many Moods of Justin Langer' over on the #LiveReport
Jack: "24 wides Debayan?!?! Who the heck was the bowler, surely not a West Indian pacer " --- 20, to be fair. There was no speed limit, so the guys were just trying to fire it in as fast and full as possible. Sprayed it around quite a bit. Our one-drop just left everything he was not close enough to. We also had a minimum of one woman per team, and the first over had to be by the woman of one team bowling to the woman of the other. It was good fun, actually
Basit Azeem: "how come hockey players can play in drizzle and cricket players are not ?" --- Was thinking that myself a while ago. Perhaps no other outdoor sport puts as much of a premium on staying dry as cricket. It is both a boon and a curse!
Ubaid Wakeel: "@debayansen how is going to be weather like for tomorrow's match? " --- The whole of this week is a bit depressing, Ubaid. ESPNcricinfo's Melinda Farrell reported earlier that the Indian team didn't even step out of their hotel for practice in Nottingham today
Suresh Guna: "@Debayan: When its a washout, teams can go to the indoor nets area, clear up space and play a 10 over game and decide the winner? Something is better than nothing" --- You know, we did have an indoor cricket tournament in our Bangalore office some months ago, with a sponge ball. The final was hilarious. The team I was in won by chasing down 24 in the last innings; 20 of those came from wides!
Dinesh: "My fav rain song: Raindrops are falling on my head, and just like the guy who's feets are big for his bed. Heard this one first time in Spider-man 2." --- Oh, I hope you have also seen/heard the version from Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid?
Pranav: "@Debayan,though "Have you ever seen the rain" is also my favorite rain song, i would think 100 times before playing/mentioning this at Bristol/Cricinfo page right now. "
Tasmeem: "Here comes the rain again by Eurythmics. Goes well with current scenario."
hadi: "@Debayan, if not have reserve days, then can atleast consider playing the same match in another city. Check the forecast 3 days in advance and make a decision. Will still be costly but atleast it's practical unlike bringing in reserve days." --- It's ironic, but as sport becomes more professional (read, dependent on broadcasters' requirements) it gets more difficult to shift things around at short notice. As a former broadcast professional, I can tell you the toughest part is getting coverage sorted. Besides the obvious cost of moving cameras and crews at short notice, the host broadcasters also need to seek permissions and book satellite timings for live broadcasts. Those cannot be done at very short notice, sadly
Manuel: "Favourite rain related song? «Rain» by The Beatles of course.By the way, it's my phone ring tone."
AtherAsad: "my fav rain song no drop of rain no glowing flame has been ever been so pure."
Adnan Zahid: "" Rain rain Go away, come again another day ! " simple "
Muhammad Abbas: "Its 45 degree here in pakistan.....no signs of rain perfect weather for a day night game.."
Ajith jayarathn: "When planing major tournament like WC The ICC should consider other aspects such as weather. Many teams qualifying opportunity will be erased with rain and proper winner for WC is doubtful " --- It's a fair point, but the 1999 World Cup was scheduled earlier in the English summer. In fact, Saqlain Mushtaq took what was then just the second World Cup hat-trick, if I am not wrong, against Zimbabwe #OnThisDay quite late into the tournament. Hard to predict how badly rain would go on to affect a tournament anywhere
Thanks, PDP. Just one of those days when we have to wait, watch (and pray). By the way, what's your favourite rain-related song? I have a few, but I have a feeling this would be top of the list
12:52 pm More from Fernando: "Cutoff is 4:15 pm. I'm hearing the ground is pretty waterlogged. So at such time that the rain does stop, it seems unlikely that the ground can be readied in time." That's my cue to step aside for a spaghetti pasta lunch. Debayan Sen is fed and ready to take over to drip feed you more updates.
Abhishek Upadhy: "From North Carolina here: I changed my sleep schedule to at least watch world cup 1st innings of every match before leaving for work." If they had a World Cup match scheduled for the lovely facility at Church Street Park in the suburb of Morrisville nearby the state capital of Raleigh, they'd be ready to go in 45 minutes as soon as the rain stops! World-class sand-based outfield drainage there. Yours truly visited in September when Hurricane Florence rolled through and dumped 13 inches of rain in the space of 36 hours and the T20 World Cup Qualifier that USA hosted didn't lose a single over when it got underway later in the week.
prabmg: "A heavily frustrated southeastern american compatriot here reporting for SLC duty, waking up every half an hour since 5.30am, only to take a glance at the status of the match and go back to sleep grunting!!! ARE YOU KIDDING ME??!" Y'all don't need to be using all caps from SEC country to express your frustration with the rain.
12:16 pm from Andrew Fernando in Bristol: "12:15 inspection has been postponed because it is still raining." Separately, Fernando says that Lasith Malinga will be taking a few days away from the team to travel back to Colombo after today's match to mourn the death of his mother-in-law. However, he is expected to be back in England before Sri Lanka's next match on Saturday against Australia.
On the injury front elsewhere in the World Cup, Shikhar Dhawan has been sidelined with a suspected hairline fracture of his left thumb. But thanks to the marathon length of the World Cup, he might actually only miss 22% of India's round-robin stage matches.
Andrew Evans: "It's raining here in Worcester, Massachusetts in solidarity with Bristol. I just did an inspection on my front lawn and it's far too wet I'm afraid." Was beginning to wonder whether my east coast American compatriots had set their alarms to wake up for this only to go back to sleep. You haven't missed anything, well, except some pithy banter from Fernando and Isam in the media box at the ground.
Aveir: "Doubt anyone can beat my exotic location; I'm sitting in my hotel room waiting for the game to start, rather than enjoy basking in the sun by the beaches of the island of Koh Samui, Thailand. Maybe I'm not studying or working, but I hope the lovely and hardworking commentators can give me a break on that aspect." By any chance is your father-in-law Robert De Niro?
Abhisek Panda: "Commentators, mean while when you guys are taking rest from commentary due to delay in toss you can enjoy watching Yuvi's six sixes with a coffee in hand. We are not going to see it in live again. Yuvraj Singh will be missed :(" Not least by Sharda Ugra, who was burning the midnight oil producing a lovely retrospective of his exploits.
As for updates from the ground, Isam's Sri Lankan partner in crime and soon-to-be-published book author Andrew Fernando has this to say from the media box: "It's still raining, drizzling. They are drying the covers but they are drying the covers. It's like the third circle of hell." Fernando also says that amazingly there are more people in the stands than the press box as 300 brave/optimistic souls have entered the gates believing that the officials can squeeze in 20 overs before the reaaaaaaal heavy stuff comes ala the bishop in "Caddyshack".
11.35 am Isam reports from the ground that the next inspection is due to take place at 12:15 pm. Meanwhile, it was expected to be an evening to remember Monday night for Toronto Raptors, as they hosted Golden State Warriors with a 3-1 lead in the NBA finals. It didn't quite go to plan, but it was a night that neither side would look back too fondly
Ahmer: "I almost spat my drink out with laughter from the collective delusion: exotic Amsterdam, exotic Prague?!?!? Only two of the most famous and most visited capital cities in Europe. Try exotic Aruba or exotic Phu Quoc." Just about any place sounds exotic relative to drizzly Bristol today my friend.
Dj: "I feel bad for the commentators now as i am sure they are flooded(like bristol) with comments following the formula provided for post approval. By the way i am studying for my exam tomorrow and posting from Melbourne Australia." Some of you are laying it on really thick with the compliments - my endorphins are getting a boost through this rain delay - though the definition of exotic must be confined to planet Earth for the current algorithm. No more space stations or Mars entries please.
sabbir170s: "What an great job by the commentators, sticking people with the continuous drop by drop rain commentary. Working and studying from exotic Prague. :D"
Zahid Hossain: "All hail the commentators! Working and following in parallel from exotic Amsterdam. Formula applied- will it be published? :-)" Presto!
Santosh Badal: "ESPNcricinfo team can you please tell me what algorithm you guys use to publish a comment. My comment is never published yet so eager to know." Well, the algorithm depends on who is in the commentary position. But generally the formula is (give flattering praise to the commentator) + (detail your passion with a brief descriptor of how you're following while working/studying for an exam)x(say you're studying/working from an exotic location) = comment published.
Ahmad: "Is it a world cup or a rain cup?" Staying warm with a tea cup, coffee cup, soup cup....
What's your favourite rain-time indulgence? Shashank Kishore's is tea and biscuits. Tell him yours. Also, here's some essential listening: are Australia heading to panic stations yet? Or will Mitchell Starc (and World Cup aura) take them far this time too? Jarrod Kimber and Dan Brettig ponder in the latest episode of our Talking World Cup podcast
Chetan: "It is displayed on my screen...(1) Notts vs Hants- stumps (No play Tuesday due to rain) (2) Kents vs Somst- stumps (No play Monday due to rain) (3) Surr vs Yorks- stumps (No play Monday due to rain) etc.......Hope for SL vs BAN " --- Hope is a good word, because Isam has just informed me that the rain has just gotten a bit heavier. Isam is happy to answer your questions, so fire away with #LiveReport as your hashtag. On that note, here's Peter Della Penna. Let's hope he can bring more joy in terms of weather updates in the immediate future
Useful primer for rain-affected games at this World Cup
10.03am Toss delayed at Bristol. The next pitch inspection scheduled for 10.30am. "Raining heavily," Isam adds, though. Adds, "Windy - maybe only solace for fans who turned up"
Saifie23: "It didn't rain in London since morning and it still is not. Bristol is being bit too cruel for cricket today!"
kieran: "Cricketers who excelled in other sports.. Jeff Wilson and Brian Mckechnie, both played for NZ cricket team and the All Blacks rugby team, something unlikely to be repeated in the professional era. Brian Mckechnie was at the receiving end of the infamous "underarm delivery" ala Trevor Chappell, and threw his bat away in disgust:)" --- Indeed. Wilson would probably qualify as one of the truly significant double internationals? In terms of pure achievement, though, I would personally rate Ellyse Perry as the real superstar in this field
Rejeesh K R: "Do we have reserve day for Semi finals and Final?" --- Yes, there's one reserve day for each of the knockout matches at this World Cup. Ironically, you would expect the English summer to get better by then. Sajan Nair fills me in with some more fascinating details that I honestly didn't know. Apparently, all the knockout matches also have the provision for a Super Over. If rain prevents a Super Over to be completed, or the match gets abandoned, then the semis go the way of the team finishing higher in the league stages. The final, if it sees such a situation, will see joint winners being declared
Meanwhile, here's a shameless self-plug of something I whipped up earlier this morning. In light of former WBBL star Ashleigh Barty's French Open singles title, can you crack this quiz on cricketers who excelled at other sports?
Mark: "As a proud Bristolian, who used to attend the County Ground regularly, don't believe that this weather is limited to my fine city. It is affecting much of Europe: I was in the Netherlands at the weekend, where the weather was diabolical and even Spain has cool temperatures and snow(!!) on the northern mountains today. It is bad luck that this big weather system has arrived at the wrong moment." --- True. Don't remember 1999 World Cup being this wet either
Umar Nasib: "County Cricket Ground, Bristol Current weather report says, Chance of RainRain: 61% Humidity: 93% Pressure: 1012 mb Cloud: 100% Visibility: 10 km Which brings no good news for BD fans like me!"
Chetan: "I heard that Dhawan is injured and Iyer or Pant is replaced." --- The first part of that statement is correct. We're just fleshing out all the details on our site. Watch this space
RG: "Recommended Poll question: How many completed games will we get this week? My answer: Aryabhatta's Magic Number!!"
Rajat Bhardwaj: "Debayan I can only think of one improvement, that is to cover full ground surface (only pitch and surrounding area is being covered). More often matches are being canceled due to wet outfield and not because of continuous rain."
Craig V: "Morning cricket fans! From a Proteas perspective, we can only hope rain affects games and we win. Well, not hoping that rain affects other games, but I am hoping we win. At some stage...hopefully all the remaining games =/"
Meanwhile. Shashank Kishore reminds me that he has got the #LiveReport up and running for this game. It's already been a busy week in terms of cricket news in and around this World Cup. What else is in store? And what polls does Shashank have in store for us today? Head over here
Ricky: "How come the update on the Manchester weather situation if the game is in Bristol?" --- Our staff is a bit like Sachin Tendulkar's bowling. We're all sorts, really. I can also tell you the update from Bristol, where Isam says it's not raining right now, but it is "very cloudy". The forecast isn't very encouraging, either
Right, while we wait for the ground to dry up, here's some reading material for you to get going in the mood for the game. What is the natural strength of both these teams? Their batting, you say? That's why the respective batting coaches were at the centre of much of the pre-match discussion: Jon Lewis expects an under-pressure middile order to come good for Sri Lanka, while Neil McKenzie simply wants better execution under pressure
Harry: "what would be the reason for Bangladesh team to reach the venue late by an hour and a half ? " --- As wcpak wryly observes, that's because there's a good chance today's ball-by-ball could become a cut-paste job of yesterday's match. PDP does tell me there are clear skies over Manchester at the moment. If it's grey and cloudy, it's fine as long as it doesn't rain further
9.32am Hello and welcome to a bright and sunny Bristol for a key World Cup clash between Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. Both teams have registered points on the board and will want to build up some momentum with this match, weather permitting. This is Debayan Sen, and Peter Della Penna will be joining in for live commentary. We will have Shashank Kishore on the #LiveReport, with Mohammad Isam and Andrew Fidel Fernando at the ground for us. Isam tells us that while the rain has stopped momentarily, the Bangladesh team is only likely to reach the venue in the next hour and a half or so. Expect a delayed start, at best then, but let's get you going with the preview by Sreshth Shah
