ENG vs IND: Rain set to hamper second day’s play in Leeds? Bad news awaits cricket fans

The opening day of the Leeds Test saw Team India race to 359 on the board from 85 overs. Shubman Gill was batting on 127 with Rishabh Pant also posting a half-century, while Yashasvi Jaiswal was out after scoring 101. It was a hot and humid day in Yorkshire, with cloud cover being prevalent for most of the day. Rain, though, steered clear as we got to witness an uninterrupted day of cricket. 

Sadly cricket fans could be in for some frustration on Saturday as heavy rains are predicted during the course of the day. Play will promptly start and we could witness uninterrupted play ahead of the lunch break. It is just before the tea break that rains are set to cause havoc. 73% rain is being predicted by AccuWeather in Leeds, which could see early tea being taken. 

The weather doesn’t seem to improve for the rest of the day, as a yellow alert has been sounded. This would mean that we could be in for just one session of play, as there is massive rain predicted for most of Saturday, hampering the second day’s play. Indian fans will be hoping for rains to stay away as Shubman Gill and Rishabh Pant are batting well. 

Yashasvi Jaiswal gives fitness update after century on day one. 

Opening batter Yashasvi Jaiswal was seen struggling with his fitness just before tea on the opening day of the Leeds Test. The 23-year-old was tended to twice by the medical team just before he completed his tonne on Friday. Jaiswal scored his fifth Test tonne before he was castled by Ben Stokes just after the tea interval. 

Speaking to the media at the end of the Jaiswal said, “Whenever I make a century, wherever it is, I enjoy it. I love it, as all my centuries are special. But of course, there are some special moments... the first century in England. We were speaking a lot in the middle and we were trying to take it session by session and try and get as many runs as possible.”

When asked about his partnership with new captain Shubman Gill, the young batter said, “There was an amazing camaraderie between us. It was amazing to bat with him (Gill) and the way he batted, calm and composed, I enjoyed it a lot and it was helping me. The strategy was to put away the bad balls, time and place the shots well. I was just thinking about handling the situation where the England team was keeping fielders or in which areas they were bowling.”

Finally addressing his fitness, Jaiswal said, “I was getting cramps in both hands. Our preparations were good while playing for India A and at Beckenham. We were discussing playing a long innings after getting a start. We got a lot of inputs from Gautam sir. So, it was nice to come to such a nice ground and perform."