Ind vs Eng

Sachin

The historic first Test of a high-profile four-match Test series between India and England has been delayed due to bad weather at the Lord's cricket ground in London on Thursday.

A slight drizzle a couple of hours before the scheduled start of play followed by dark sky overhead caused the delay.

The conditions are expected to get better as the day progresses.

The fickle English weather, however, could play spoilsport as rain is predicted on all the five days of the match which has generated a lot of interest.

Strong contenders India and England go into a high-voltage Test series with the spotlight on Sachin Tendulkar who aims to achieve an incredible milestone of 100 international centuries in a match which has historic significance.

The series opener happens to be the 100th Test between the two sides and also the 2000th in the history of the game.

The historic venue could also become a witness to Sachin Tendulkar's 100th international century in his 22nd year in Test cricket as the champion batsman is just a ton away from achieving the feat.

But leaving aside all the historical importance associated with the Test, the four-match series is also touted as a fight between two best teams of the world for Test cricket's top position.

While India would be desperate to do whatever it takes to hold on to its numero uno Test status, a series win by a two game margin will see England topple Mahendra Singh Dhoni's men from the pinnacle.

But against a formidable side like England, who have been unbeaten in the last five series at home, it won't be easy for the Indians, who did very little to impress in the drawn practice match against Somerset at Taunton.

Dhoni, who has yet to lose any of his 10 Test series since he became permanent captain - India have won seven and drawn three under the wicketkeeper-batsman, said a new attitude had helped the team abroad.

Teams (from):

India: MS Dhoni(capt & wicketkeeper), G Gambhir, R Dravid, Harbhajan Singh, Z Khan, P Kumar, VVS Laxman, A Mishra, A Mukund, MM Patel, SK Raina, WP Saha†, V Sehwag, I Sharma,S Sreesanth, SR Tendulkar, Yuvraj Singh

England: AJ Strauss (capt), AN Cook, JM Anderson, IR Bell, TT Bresnan, SCJ Broad, EJG Morgan, KP Pietersen, MJ Prior (wicketkeeper), GP Swann, CT Tremlett, IJL Trott