Summary

  • First Test, day three, Lord's

  • Rain delays start of play

  • New Zealand need 218 runs to win; England require seven wickets

  • Listen to BBC Radio 5 Live Sport commentary at top of page or overseas listeners click here

  • Have your say using the 'Get Involved' button

Have your say on England men this summer

Live Reporting

by Ffion Wynne

  1. Stephan Shemilt
    BBC Sport cricket correspondent at Lord's

    The weather is dry, the covers are off. Bar the creases being repainted, the ground is ready. The players are out warming up. Why are we not playing?

  2. If there is no further rain, the timings for today will be:

    Afternoon session: 1300-1610

    Tea: 1610-1630

    Evening session: 1630-1900

    Extra 30 mins to make up the overs, 86 overs for the day.

  3. Sam Drury
    BBC Sport at Lord's

    Silly is definitely the word. Given how much rain is forecast for today, it seems bizarre that in this brief spell when it is dry, they have decided to take lunch.

    All the covers are off, the stumps are in the ground but the players are nowhere to be seen.

  4. This could end up looking a bit silly.

    It's glorious at Lord's now, sunny and dry, and the crowd are in their seats.

    But the players will be having lunch shortly and the next band of rain is expected at around 13:00 onwards, just after the break has finished.

  5. Early lunch at 12:20 BST

    And there's confirmation that players will be taking an early lunch between 12:20 and 13:00.

    The umpires will then take a further look.

  6. I'm not going to promise anything considering how stop-start the rain has been all morning, but for now, the covers are starting to come off and it actually looks quite sunny.

    They have been saying that it'll take about an hour to get the ground ready, though. You can almost guarantee it'll rain again at some point between now and then.

  7. Sooryavanshi earns first India call-up

    Vaibhav SooryavanshiGetty Images

    Looking forward to later in the summer, there has been some news from the India camp this morning as they confirmed their squad for the T20 tour of Ireland and England.

    India play two matches in Ireland later this month and then five T20s against England in July.

    The headline is a first international call-up for teenage sensation Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, who was the leading run-scorer in this year's IPL.

    The 15-year-old scored 776 runs in 16 innings at a phenomenal strike-rate of 237.30 for Rajasthan Royals.

    Read more here.

  8. Sam Drury
    BBC Sport at Lord's

    Two minutes ago, the rain was as bad as it has been all morning. Truly awful.

    Now? The rain has stopped completely and the sun is shining.

    The British summer is really doing its thing today.

  9. Lord's poor pitch problem

    Vaughan explains why wickets are falling at Lord's

    The pitch has dominated all of the discussion about this Test so far, which is to be expected when 33 wickets fall in two days.

    The bounce has been extremely inconsistent, with Jacob Bethell the unluckiest of the lot as he was bowled by one that barely got off the ground.

    Several pundits have criticised the Lord's surface with suggestions that it needs to be dug up, and started again from scratch.

    Read more thoughts from Michael Vaughan and Jonathan Agnew here.

  10. It's going to be one of those days, I'm afraid. The ground staff are getting their steps in, as they've dragged the covers on and off about three times in the past 10 minutes.

    Those blue skies that had briefly appeared are now a distant memory, as it is grey, gloomy and grim.

    We will keep you updated as soon as we hear any news.

  11. If and when play does resume, England will need seven wickets to take a 1-0 lead in the series while New Zealand will need a further 218 runs.

    Here's a quick recap of what happened yesterday, another completely chaotic day.

    17 wickets fall as England take control on another action-packed day

  12. Sam Drury
    BBC Sport at Lord's

    It was a grim, grey day at Lord's. Things then changed significantly, the covers were being removed and the sun was briefly shining.

    Now, it's somewhere in between.

    Umbrellas are still down, but there is clearly enough rain in the air that the groundstaff are taking no chances.

    The rain early was never torrential and there has been talk of a window of opportunity between downpours early this afternoon.

    England will hope there is enough play to get this game wrapped up between the rain. We shall see.

    Edit no. 12977: The rain has now got heavy enough that brollies are up around the ground. It's going to be one of those days.

  13. BBC Test Match Special

    The Test Match Special team are still around to keep you entertained, though!

    Tune in on Radio 5 Sports Extra, BBC Sounds or via the link at the top of this page.

  14. Welcome

    Good morning!

    Unfortunately, the thrilling conclusion to this Test is going to have to wait. It's been raining heavily at Lord's this morning and the covers have been on.

    They are just starting to be removed, but it's going to take a bit of time to get the ground ready.

    Lord's cricket groundGetty Images