LEEDS: The first one-day international (ODI) between England and the West Indies at Headingley was abandoned without a ball being bowled after rain made the outfield unplayable on Thursday.

A heavy downpour delayed the scheduled start. Although the ground was subsequently bathed in sunshine, hours later standing water remained on the outfield at the home of Yorkshire cricket. This was despite the county having spent $940,273 on a new drainage system during the off-season.

It was a concerning sign for Yorkshire chiefs ahead of the fourth Ashes Test against Australia, which is due to take place at Headingley from August 7-11.

When it was announced following an umpires inspection at 2pm that the officials would have another look an hour later, boos rang out around the ground from frustrated spectators. And when Australian umpire Steve Davis and his English colleague Nigel Llong decided there was no prospect of play and called the game off shortly after 3pm, their decision was greeted with more cat-calls from the crowd.

The second match of this three-game series is at Bristol on Sunday before concluding on Tuesday at Birmingham’s Edgbaston ground.