Southampton Weather Forecast, England vs Pakistan 3rd Test: Will Rain Disrupt Play at The Ageas Bowl?

Southampton Weather Forecast: Will rain again have the final say in the third Test as it had in the second?

Southampton Weather Forecast, England vs Pakistan 3rd Test

The second Test between England and Pakistan ended in a draw after rain continued to dominate the proceedings allowing just 134.2 overs across the five days. Two innings were completed inside those overs  with England bowling out Pakistan for 236 before declaring on 110/4.  The turn of events in Southampton prompted the governing authorities – ICC and ECB – to allow for some flexibility as far as the start of the third Test goes. Play can start earlier that what is scheduled to make up for the time lost due to rain or bad light.

England lead the series 1-0 after winning the series opener in Manchester by three wickets. They just need to avoid a defeat to ensure a first home Test series win over Pakistan in a decade. The victory will also end a successful home summer with England having earlier beaten West Indies 2-1.

“My message to the guys today was quite simple really,” England captain Joe Root said at his eve of match press conference. “We don’t know when the next time is that we’ll play Test cricket. Let’s make sure we leave no stones unturned and we give everything to each other and the badge going into this last game.

Pakistan captain Azhar Ali feels confident a big innings is not far after having recorded a string of low scores.

“I was feeling really confident about myself in the two hours or so I spent at the crease in my previous innings (20) and my balance was good as well,” he said. “It is my responsibility to make sure that I score runs.”

WEATHER FORECAST

According to weather.com, showers are expected on the opening day in Southampton but the second and third day may go uninterrupted. However, the forecast is not so bright for the fourth and fifth day’s play with rain expected to play some role.

Toss: The toss between England and Pakistan will take place at 3:00 PM (IST).

Time: 3:30 PM IST

Venue:The Ageas Bowl, Southampton

ENG vs PAK Squads

England: Rory Burns, Dominic Sibley, Zak Crawley, Joe Root (captain), Ollie Pope, Jos Buttler (wk), Chris Woakes, Sam Curran, Dominic Bess, Stuart Broad, James Anderson, Jofra Archer, Mark Wood, Ollie Robinson

Pakistan: Shan Masood, Abid Ali, Azhar Ali (captain), Babar Azam, Asad Shafiq, Fawad Alam, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Yasir Shah, Shaheen Afridi, Mohammad Abbas, Naseem Shah, Imam-ul-Haq, Kashif Bhatti, Shadab Khan, Sarfaraz Ahmed, Sohail Khan