Deciding third England Test delayed following Queen’s passing

England has announced the second day of the third and final Test against South Africa will not take place as scheduled on Friday following the death of the Queen.

An announcement on whether the series decider at The Oval will get under way on Saturday or be postponed is set to be made by the England and Wales Cricket Board “in due course”.

The first day of play on Thursday was a complete wash out due to persistent rain in London.

ECB chair Richard Thompson said on the governing body’s website: “I’m sure I speak for everyone in the game when I say how truly sad I am to hear of the Queen’s passing.

“Her Majesty has been such a great supporter of the game and was always so vocal of her and her late husband’s enjoyment around the sport.

“Her dedication to her country will never be forgotten. For her service and her selflessness over her extraordinary reign, we owe her a debt that can never be repaid.”

There was plenty of anticipation for the England-South Africa rubber match, with the Proteas winning the Lord’s opener by an innings before the hosts returned the favour at Old Trafford.

But heavy rain on Thursday led to a washout and even though there was enough of a dry interlude for a toss to take place in the morning, with Ben Stokes electing to bowl first, any prospect of play was officially abandoned at 4.45pm local time.

Debutant Harry Brook, who was presented with his maiden Test cap by Yorkshire teammate Joe Root, must therefore wait to take the field having been named 24 hours earlier as the replacement for the injured Jonny Bairstow in England’s only change from their victory at Old Trafford.

James Anderson, meanwhile, was presented with a special cap by former England batter Marcus Trescothick to commemorate his 175th Test appearance.

South Africa made a raft of changes, bringing in batters Ryan Rickelton and Khaya Zondo for the injured Rassie van der Dussen and out-of-form Aiden Markram.

All-rounder Wiaan Mulder and left-arm quick Marco Jansen also replaced spinner Simon Harmer and seamer Lungi Ngidi, who was ruled out with a niggle.