Edgbaston Test on Knife-Edge: Rain Threatens India's Victory Push Against England

The weather in Birmingham on Sunday could significantly impact India's chances of leveling the series 1-1 in the second Test against England at Edgbaston.

India's captain Shubman Gill celebrates a century during the second Test.

India holds a commanding position in the match, largely thanks to captain Shubman Gill's outstanding performance. He achieved the rare feat of scoring both 250 and 150 in the same match. Furthermore, the dynamic bowling duo of Mohammed Siraj and Akash Deep have been instrumental in putting pressure on the English side as the tourists aim for a series-leveling victory.

Gill, after his impressive first-innings score of 267, followed up with a brilliant 161 off just 162 balls in the second innings.

He eventually declared India's second innings at 427-6 after tea on the fourth day.

This set England a daunting target of 608 runs to win, a victory that would put them 2-0 up in the five-match series.

However, weather forecasts suggest that the morning will begin with overcast skies and light showers expected between 9:00 AM and 11:00 AM. These early showers could potentially delay the start of play and introduce some life into the pitch, offering assistance to seam bowlers due to the increased moisture.

According to the UK Met Office, the weather is likely to affect the first part of the day in Birmingham, with rain probabilities fluctuating between 50% and 30% from 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM local time (7:30 PM IST). However, the forecast also indicates that "heavy rain will give way to overcast skies by lunchtime," and the likelihood of further showers is expected to decrease to below 10% after 3:00 PM.

To provide context to the enormity of the task ahead for England, it is worth noting that the highest successful fourth-innings chase in Test cricket history remains the West Indies' 418 against Australia in St John's in 2003.

England’s best record is the 378 they made against India at Edgbaston three years ago.

At the close of play on Saturday in Birmingham, England were 72-3, requiring a further 536 runs on the final day. This would be a remarkable achievement, even in their current 'Bazball' era characterized by aggressive batting.

Mohammed Siraj, who spearheaded India's attack with figures of 6-70 in the first innings, made an early breakthrough on Saturday by dismissing Zak Crawley for a duck.

Akash Deep, stepping in for the world's top-ranked fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah, continued his impressive form from the first innings (where he took four wickets) by bowling left-hander Ben Duckett (25) with a ball that nipped back sharply.

He then clean bowled Joe Root for just six, with a superb full-length delivery that moved away late, leaving the world's number one-ranked Test batsman undone.