Weather could have a say in fifth day's action in Headingley Test
Rain is forecast for the lead up to the start of play and there could be intermittent showers thereafter too
ESPNcricinfo staff
24-Jun-2025 • 13 hrs ago
Jasprit Bumrah will be hoping for the sky to be his ally • Getty Images
Weather could have a say in what has shaped up as a blockbuster finish to the Headingley Test between England and India. The early-morning forecast for Leeds is of showers in the lead up to 11am local time (3.30pm IST) start and intermittent showers through the day thereafter, which, if it does come true, could mean a stop-start flow to the day.
The game is tantalisingly poised after the two teams finished on an even keel after the first-innings exchanges, India first scoring 471 and England replying with 465, just six runs between them. India have since scored 364 in their second innings, leaving England a target of 371, of which they have shaved off 21 with a day to go. And 350 runs don't seem too many in 90 overs for a team known to score quickly, come rain or shine.
"[We will] just go for the win. That's the clear message in the changing room," Josh Tongue, who cleaned up India's tail in the second innings for figures of 3 for 72, said after the fourth day. "It's just [about] being as positive as we can. They're going to bowl well at times tomorrow. It's just crucial we soak up that bit of pressure and reapply it. I don't see why we can't chase that down."
All of which, in what promises to be overcast conditions at Headingley, will likely bring Jasprit Bumrah & Co into play in a big way.
"There's definitely going to be a result," KL Rahul, century-maker in India's second innings, said. "That's what England have said very openly, and their style of cricket suggests that as well. It gives us a good opportunity to pick up ten wickets. We know how they're going to come out and bat on day five.
"The wicket today was a very tricky wicket: I spent a lot of time batting there and I didn't feel set at all at any given stage. The wicket's taken a beating, and tomorrow might break even more… We know their style of cricket, so [we'll] try to keep that in the back of our heads and try to see what lines and lengths we can bowl and how we can get them out."