Image source, Getty Images

There is at least one Irishman playing cricket at the moment.

Tim Murtagh, who played three Tests, 58 ODIs and 14 T20Is for Ireland before he retired from international cricket in November 2019, is giving Warwickshire's batters headaches down at Lord's.

The 42-year-old seamer, who famously got on the honours board at Lord's in Ireland's first Test against England in July 2019, has taken 5-55 in the first innings of his final match at the home of cricket for Middlesex.

Warwickshire are still in a decent position at 204-6 in response to Middlesex's 121 all out.

You can follow the live text commentary of the penultimate round of County Championship matches here...

The rain has stopped at Headingley and the cloud is starting to break. It's still pretty wet on the outfield as the groundstaff continue to work away with the mopping up.

These children from Trinity Academy Akroydon, a primary school in Halifax, are enjoying themselves and you can see from the thumbs up they are optimistic they will see some cricket later.

Image source, Trinity Academy Akroydon

What of Zak Crawley's captaincy credentials? Well, it would be fair to class him as a rookie in terms of experience.

He has previously led Kent in two County Championship matches and two games in the T20 Blast, but his leadership qualities have been identified by the England setup.

The man himself said he was "shocked" to get the call from coach Matthew Mott to skipper the side in this series against Ireland but acknowledge it was "great opportunity". He plans to stick to the formula which has made England's limited-overs team so successful.

"We all know how this England white-ball team has played over the past eight years," Crawley told BBC Sport.

"We know how to get into the main team, it's by being aggressive, showing people what skill and quality you have. That's what we should all try to do this week."

The rain has relented sufficiently at Headingley for the groundstaff to resume the mopping up operation. It's looking a little brighter here now.

We will keep you posted on the start time. We've lost just over an hour of play so far.

There's a sodden St George's Cross flapping away on a pole at the back of the North East stand. The wind has picked up at Headingley and it's blowing the rain sideways at the moment.

A reminder that the latest we can start is 17:32 BST which is the final cut-off point for a 20 overs per side match.

It's still lashing it down here.

Image source, Getty Images

Zak Crawley will captain England in this ODI series against Ireland.

The Kent opener has played 39 Tests for England but has not been part of a white-ball team who are world champions in both limited-overs format.

Crawley played three ODIs for England in 2021, when Ben Stokes led a hastily-assembled squad after many of the team's white-ball regulars were ruled out because of a Covid outbreak.

The rain which I battled through on the Pennines en route to Headingley has just caught up with us. The cityscape has disappeared behind a wall of grey.

It's absolutely bucketing down at the moment.

The majority of those spectators who had been sat out in the stands with brollies have beaten a hasty retreat to the concourses under the stands to find some shelter.

Signs of movement.

The groundstaff at Headingley have just re-emerged from their sanctum on the edge of the outfield and started to remove the various sandbags and weights which are on top of the ground sheets covering the square and the bowlers' run-ups.

However, the urgency with which they are performing said task - or rather the lack of it - perhaps indicates we are still some way off a start.

Inevitably, the toss has been delayed here at Headingley. The covers are very much still in place at the moment.

There are a smattering of spectators already in their seats, patiently waiting with their hoods and brollies up.

Image source, BBC Weather

Driving over the Pennines this morning the skies were like a particularly bleak scene out of a Bronte novel. With rain hammering down and the wind howling, I didn't think there was much prospect of play today.

Upon arrival at Headingley, however, the weather eased markedly and conditions are considerably better. The start will be delayed, but looking at the forecast for later in the afternoon we should have some play today.

Image source, Getty Images

The final throes of England's summer bring us to Headingley and the first of a three-match ODI series against Ireland.

This had been shaping up as a possible arm wrestle between Harry Brook and Jason Roy for the final batting spot in England's squad.

However, that debate was nipped in the bud when Brook was given the nod for the final 15 and withdrawn from this squad.

There's still plenty to get our teeth stuck into, however. Two travelling reserve spots in England's squad for India are up for grabs while Joe Root, struggling for form in ODIs, has come for a knock. Four players could make their England debut, while Zak Crawley will make his captaincy bow.

The bad news is, we are unlikely to start on time after some morning rain in Leeds. The covers are on, the groundstaff are busy mopping up, but there is some very light rain still falling.