Rain Delays Fourth ODI at Lord's: Will England Level the Series Against Australia?

It has been a cold, wet, miserable morning in London and, unsurprisingly, it looks like we're going to have a delayed start. Things did clear up briefly, the covers were off, the pitch was cut and it was all very encouraging. Unfortunately, the rain has since returned and the covers are firmly in place for the time being.

Well, the first thing to tell you is that we won't be getting going at 12:30 BST. It's rained heavily in London this morning and the pitch is well and truly covered. I've consulted various rain radars, arcane items of meteorological equipment and personally called my good friend Michael Fish, and it does seem it might brighten up later today - a lot may depend on how wet the outfield is.

On Tuesday, England beat Australia in an ODI for the first time in, the statisticians say, a gazillion years. That dragged them back into this five-match series, which now stands at 2-1. Can they level it up in the fourth ODI at Lord's? And will the weather intervene?

Either way, we'll guide you through it.

The Weather

It's most definitely turn of the season weather out there today. London is getting drenched, while Manchester is bathed in sunshine. Too warm for a coat over the top of a sweater, but leave it at home and you'll be bound to get drenched. The perfect weather for international cricket, basically.

I wish some roads near me had the same drainage as Lord's. It's extraordinary! If it wasn't raining now, we wouldn't be very far off from starting.

Certainly plenty of broom action out there as the covers are swept of rain. Given the decline of the chimney sweeping industry, perhaps a modern Mary Poppins remake would feature Lord's groundstaff putting on a show. In fact, Dick van Dyke still pretty sprightly - let's get that 98-year-old out there dancing on the covers. It'd pass the time during the rain delay, at least.

There are still plenty of umbrellas up in the stands but the ground staff have sprung into action. They're busy clearing water off the sheets covering the square so we can only hope that means they're confident the worst has passed.

England's Injury Concerns

A little bit of news from yesterday in case you missed it... Pace bowler Josh Hull has been ruled out of England's tour of Pakistan with a quad injury. The 20-year-old left-armer made his Test debut against Sri Lanka earlier this month, having played only 10 first-class matches. He picked up three wickets as England were beaten in the third Test at The Oval, then was subsequently ruled out of the limited-overs series against Australia. England have opted not to call up a replacement.

Really poor from the ECB, this. It's nearly October and it's actually rather cold! Do the fans actually want our international cricket to be played during the extremities of the summer?

England's Chances

England will be looking to build on their momentum from their victory in the third ODI. However, they will be without the injured Josh Hull and will need to find a way to overcome the challenging weather conditions.

The Fourth ODI: A Pivotal Match

The fourth ODI at Lord's is a crucial match for both teams. England will be looking to level the series, while Australia will be aiming to take a commanding lead. The weather conditions will play a significant role in the outcome of the match. With rain expected to continue, the match could be a shortened affair or even washed out completely.