We won't get carried away just yet. But the covers are coming off at the Kensington Oval.

Sir Alastair Cook
Former England captain on TNT Sports

Jos Buttler's stats say only one fifty in his last 16 ODI innings. His last innings. One innings doesn't change it. You start every innings on nought and you have to find your way.

I think Buttler was just a bit surprised by the short ball from Joseph. Instinct takes over, he didn't try to hit it for six, and that extra bounce did for him.

Image source, Getty Images

We've had a lot of chat on the texts and tweets about Jos Buttler's dismissal, and his suitability as England captain in ODI cricket more generally. What does former England captain Sir Alastair Cook think?

It's still raining in Bridgetown at the moment. The playing conditions state we lose an over every 3.5 minutes, so it's looking likely England will not get the chance to bat again.

Sir Alastair Cook
Former England captain on TNT Sports

What impressed me about Matthew Forde was that he didn't really bowl any loose balls.

There was one in his first over then he was quickly into his rhythm.

The weather maps seems to suggest a weather delay of 30 to 40 minutes.

In other news, just made myself an underappreciated classic of British cuisine: a crisp sandwich.

Steven Finn
Former England bowler on TNT Sports

Image source, BBC Sport

It was a fantastic start for Matthew Forde. We weren't entirely sure what he was going to bowl, in-swing or out-swing. He was an unknown entity.

He started with in-swingers and as soon as he got the ball in his hands, he got into his work.

England's run rate is 4.87. Suspect any more time lost out of the game will work in favour of West Indies.

Rain stops playpublished at 22:01 Greenwich Mean Time 9 December 2023

22:01 GMT 9 December 2023

The umpires have taken the players off. The umbrellas are going up.

Rain has stopped play.

It seems like Stuart in Lawrence Gap was absolutely spot on.

Some gentlemen wearing bright yellow macs - the kind you associate with fishermen - are running on with the covers.

Image source, Getty Images

I think there's some groundstaff hovvering on the edge of the boundary ready with covers on, so word must have reached the Kensington Oval there is some weather about. Hopefully we dodge the showers.

The game of cat and mouse between Yannic Cariah and Rehan Ahmed continues. The West Indies leg-spinner has a few words in his follow through after he beats the outside edge of Ahmed's defensive poke.

Three runs off the over.

For the uninitiated, a quick search shows that St Lawrence Gap is about 20 minutes drive from Kensington Oval.

So hopefully that rain is going in the other direction!

Matthew Forde, who has 3-20 on debut for the West Indies, starts well in his second spell.

Rehan Ahmed is hurried by a short delivery from Forde's penultimate ball which he considers taking on, but eventually pulls out of.

Two runs off the over.

Rehan Ahmed is embroiled in a mini tete-a-tete with fellow leg-spinner Yannic Cariah.

Good use of the feet from the Leicestershire man brings him a couple off Cariah's third ball, which the fielder at deep long-off does well to prevent a boundary.

Ahmed pinches the strike off the final ball of the over with a cut into the off side.

Image source, Getty Images

England have a win percentage of 53.3% at the Kensington Oval in ODIs, which is higher than the West Indies' 42.8%.

Romario Shepherd, an earring in each lobe glistening under the floodlights, produces a a tight over until the final ball to Rehan Ahmed who pings the ball on the up over the fielder catching in the covers to the boundary for four.

The impudence of youth eh?

England have 13 overs to get themselves north of 200 here.