Summary

  • Use the audio icon at the top of the page to listen to BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra commentary

  • Welsh Fire win by nine runs to end eight-game losing run

  • Shaheen removes Salt & Evans with first two balls of chase

  • Buttler finishes unbeaten on 37

  • Fire 94-3: Wells 57 (23), Phillips 19 (12); Little 2-22

  • Play starts at 17:00 BST after rain throughout day

  • Match reduced to 40 balls per side

Live Reporting

Mike Peter

  1. The teams

    For those of an optimistic persuasion, these are the XIs if they do manage to get out there in the next half hour.

    An abandonment would be a real shame because there are some very exciting players in those teams!

    Welsh Fire: Tom Abell (c), Joe Clarke (wk), Steve Eskinazi, Luke Wells, Glenn Phillips, David Willey, David Payne, Roelof van der Merwe, Ben Green, Haris Rauf, Shaheen Shah Afridi.

    Manchester Originals: Phil Salt (wk), Jos Buttler (c), Laurie Evans, Max Holden, Ashton Turner, Paul Walter, Jamie Overton, Usama Mir, Tom Hartley, Josh Little, Josh Tongue.

  2. It is still looking pretty gloomy in Cardiff and the covers are firmly in place.

    Yep, it's still chucking it down and with the first ball needing to be bowled by 17:18 BST, time is running out.

    I fear we're in abandonment territory...

  3. rain stops play

    It's raining...

    Oh dear. Bad news. It's raining again at Cardiff.

    It's not just raining, it's lashing it down. Hopefully it's just a passing shower...

  4. Manchester Originals win the toss and bowl

    Jos Buttler calls 'heads', it is a head and Manchester Originals are going to bowl first.

  5. We're still waiting for the toss but we have got one more snippet of information about the playing conditions...

    The powerplay will be 11 balls.

  6. Play to start at 16:50 BST

    Good news! Following the pitch inspection, the umpires have decreed that the toss will take place at 16:30 BST - so any moment now - and play will start at 16:50 BST.

    It will be 45 balls per side with a maximum of 10 balls per bowler.

    Most importantly, though, we are going to have some cricket!

  7. No official word yet on a start time but it is still dry, the Welsh Fire players are out warming up and the stumps are going in.

    The signs are good. How many balls-a-side it will be remains to be seen.

  8. We're still a few minutes away from the next pitch inspection but it is looking remarkably bright at Sophia Gardens now.

    The covers are off and so hopefully we will have news of a start time before too long.

  9. Another inspection at 16:15 BST

    Sophia GardensBBC Sport

    A much better picture in Cardiff now where some of the groundsheets have been removed and, if you look closely, you can even see a bit of blue sky!

    Still, there was plenty of rain this morning and the early part of the afternoon so the outcome of the inspection is... another inspection in a little more than half an hour's time.

  10. Inspection at 15:30 BST

    Good news from Sophia Gardens. The rain has stopped and there will be a pitch inspection at 15:30 BST, so in around half an hour.

    The less good news is that I'm told thunderstorms are forecast at around 16:00 BST...

  11. Match delayed by rain

    Sophia Gardens, CardiffGetty Images

    The rain that saw the women's match between Welsh Fire and Manchester Originals washed out has continued so the men's game in Cardiff has also been delayed.

    The latest play can begin is 17:18 BST - very precise, I know - so there is still a chance of some cricket but it doesn't look overly positive at the moment.

    We'll keep you updated as and when we get word of a potential start or an abandonment.