Jacques Kallis continued his fine form at this World Cup with a half-century to lead South Africa to a seven-wicket Super 8 victory over Ireland in Guyana.

With the match curtailed to 35 overs a side due to a lengthy rain delay, Ireland posted an admirable 152-8.

Andrew White (30) top-scored but Shaun Pollock's 2-17 kept the Proteas on top.

Graeme Smith's 41 set the platform and, despite Boyd Rankin's 2-26, Kallis (66) and Ashwell Prince (47) eased them home after 31.3 overs under Duckworth-Lewis.

606: DEBATE Give your thoughts on this match throughout the day

Text us on 84040, email [email protected] or contribute to 606

By Mark Mitchener

32nd over: 165-3 - SA win by 7 wickets (D/L)
Mooney beats Kallis's outside edge, which draws a rueful, toothy smile from the former Glamorgan man. A full-toss is pulled to midwicket for one - four needed. Prince cover-drives to the boundary - and it is saved by White just in front of the rope. Prince then straight-drives a six, and it's all over. It's been a marathon clockwatch session (thanks to all that rain) - many thanks to those of you who've stuck with it. That's it from me for today - Ben Dirs will be in this chair for the England game tomorrow.

31st over: 155-3
It's very dark now. If this was a Test Match, I'm sure they'd have given this up for the day, but Botha replaces White for his sixth over. Kallis takes two to the cover sweeper as the Proteas pass Ireland's innings score. (Remember, although Ireland scored 152 in their innings, because it was interrupted by three rain intervals, SA's target was revised upwards to 160 under the Duckworth/Lewis rules). Five needed, one big hit to win it.

30th over: 151-3
Paul Mooney is back on the field and back into the attack. He's not quite as expensive as in his first two overs, but Prince pulls him to the leg side just wide of Johnston at mid-on. Not much luck for the Irish at the moment - but they will rue those dropped catches. Kallis cuts to the cover boundary for a single as the 150 comes up.

"Boyd Rankin is having a brilliant World Cup. As a Middlesex supporter, I'm furious that we let him go at the beginning of last season. What were we thinking?"
Patrick, London, in the TMS inbox

29th over: 144-3
More of the same from White as the singles continue to flow.

"That was a bad toss to lose this morning"
John Kenny on TMS

28th over: 139-3
It's off-spin from both ends as Prince hoists McCallan over wide mid-on for two consecutive fours, the latter of which brings up the fifty partnership. Prince and Kallis help themselves to more easy singles as the Proteas ease towards their target. John Mooney is on as a substitute fielder for his brother Paul.

27th over: 128-3
Andrew White, the top scorer in Ireland's innings, is the seventh bowler introduced by Johnston. He's an off-spinner and has a loud lbw shout against Kallis when he sweeps, but umpire Simon Taufel feels it was missing leg stump - although Hawkeye indicates that it may have struck leg stump. Kallis then drives to Rankin at long-off - three runs are taken from the over, but still not the wicket Ireland need.

26th over: 125-3
With the light beginning to fail (although SA are around 20 runs ahead on D/L), McCallan continues and he's given the charge by Prince, who opens the face and lofts an off-drive than bounces just once in front of the rope at long-off.

25th over: 119-3
Botha ("a Chris Harris lookalike", according to Barry Richards) replaces DLS as Johnston rotates his bowlers, but Prince and Kallis are still picking up singles at will. They take two apiece. A brief drinks break for the batsmen (who also get the use of one of those pristine white towels).

24th over: 115-3
Prince reverse-sweeps McCallan very fine, allowing them to scamper through for two. He then plays a wristy on-drive past the bowler for a single. Fairly tidy still from McCallan, but they still need a wicket.

"South Africa's net run-rate is in the minus column at the moment - all the other top sides like New Zealand, Australia and Sri Lanka are in the plus column. They want to finish this quickly"
Barry Richards on TMS

23rd over: 111-3
Kallis flicks DLS off his legs to bring up his half-century (61 balls, 100 minutes, 8 fours, 2 dropped catches). O'Brien the gloveman stands up to the stumps to stem the flow of quick singles, but they move on to Nelson. 49 to win from 72 balls.

22nd over: 106-3
Another life for Mr Kallis, as he paddles McCallan up into the air to short fine leg, where the catch falls just short of the diving Johnston. If he was a cat, he'd be down to seven lives now. More ones and twos are added to the score.

"As an Irishman with a Sri Lankan Dad I've followed TMS since I was a kid, I'm really enjoying the World Cup coverage and am following both Ireland's and Sri Lanka's games closely! I didn't think I'd end up having to choose between them in the Super 8s! Nice also to hear John Kenny on TMS - let's hope Ireland can grab a few quick South African wickets to get them back in the game"
Walter Jayawardene in the TMS inbox

21st over: 101-3
DLS returns to the attack - "a slightly portly figure", according to TMS's Arlo White - and he trundles in to Kallis, who belts him to his favoured cover boundary for four. Six is taken off the over as the hundred is brought up.

20th over: 95-3
Vice-captain Kyle McCallan is on for some right-arm off-spin, and he'll go round the wicket to the southpaw Prince. Johnston has posted himself in what is nearly a silly mid-off catching position. Prince lofts a paddle to DLS at fine leg for a single, and McCallan will go over the wicket to the reprieved Kallis, who is hit on the pad as he sweeps but a muted lbw appeal is rejected.

Right. SA have now faced 20 overs, so we now have a match. If it were to rain again (and there are no signs that it will), the Duckworth/Lewis charts come into operation.

19th over: 94-3
Johnston gambles on Rankin's last over, and the skipper shows off his fielding skills with a superb pick-up-and-throw at mid-off. Prince then gets off the mark with a three to wide long-off, where DLS eventually does the fielding. Rankin then gives Kallis a "life" when the 6ft 8ins seamer gets his hands to a low return catch, but is unable to take the chance. He finishes with figures of 7-1-26-2. Oh, how they may rue that miss.

18th over: 90-3
Kallis finally gets Botha away for a four, and adds a single. Just over the half-way point, SA need 70 to win from 17 overs.

The Big Green Monster vote is over - 3,212 of you voted, and 62% think rain-affected games should go into the second day (10% said "no, give the teams one point each" and 28% favour starting a new game on the reserve day). Thanks for your votes.

17th over: WICKET - Gibbs c White b Rankin 6 - SA 85-3
With Ireland desperately needing a wicket, Johnston takes himself off and strike bowler Rankin returns for his sixth over. It works as Gibbs, who looked out of sorts, pulls a short one from Rankin to White at midwicket. A big wicket - and the new man is left-hander Ashwell Prince, who was brought in as the extra batsman for this game. Rankin hits him on the gloves as he extracts a bit of bounce.

16th over: 84-2
Botha's medium pace allows Kallis another easy single, but Gibbs is tied down for the rest of the over. Botha has a very respectable three overs for five runs against the country of his birth.

15th over: 83-2
Powerplays over. Kallis drives through midwicket, and makes the fielders chase all the way as it crosses the boundary for four. Many thanks to those of you who have e-mailed in to point out that the live scorecard was showing SA as having already won by 7 runs under the D/L method. No match-fixing was intended - we've given the live statistics feed a metaphorical clip around the ear.

Drinks break, which gives web users the perfect chance to vote on the Big Green Monster if you haven't already. You've got just over five minutes left to do so.

14th over: 76-2
There's now enough sun in Guyana (1634 local time, 2134 BST) to cast a shadow or two over the outfield as Kallis just adds a single from Botha's over.

13th over: WICKET - Smith c & b Johnston 41 - SA 75-2
Smith straight-drives Johnston straight back, and the Ireland captain takes a stunning one-handed caught-and-bowled. He's replaced by Herschelle Gibbs, who digs out a yorker on his first ball, but then lofts Johnston over the covers for four.

"That was a magnificent catch, considering he's had shoulder problems, and it could be a wicket which could energise Ireland"
Colin Croft on TMS

12th over: 71-1
Paul Mooney is having a World Cup debut to forget - a golden duck, and Smith has hit him out of the attack. He's been replaced after going for 23 runs in his first two overs, and the new bowler is the shaven-headed medium-fast seamer Andre Botha. He's less expensive than Mooney, and Smith'n'Kallis just add three singles.

The Big Green Monster vote (should rain-affected games go into the next day?) is proving a hit with some of you - with "Yes" taking an early lead of the three options (the others are "No - give the teams one point each" and "No - but start a new game on the reserve day"). Keep your votes coming in.

11th over: 68-1
Captain Trent Johnston takes the second powerplay (with the reduction to 35 overs, it's only for 4 overs and there's no third powerplay) and brings himself into the attack in place of Rankin. The Proteas take a comfortable four runs from the over.

Website users should also see a Big Green Monster vote box appear in the top right of their screens - please send us your votes, you've got half-an-hour.

10th over: 64-1
Kallis takes a single to third man, but Mooney takes some more punishment as Smith pulls him for four to leg, and paddles another easy four off the final ball of the over. Easy pickings for the SA captain.

9th over: 54-1
Smith collects his third boundary of the innings with a straight-drive that bisects the bowler and mid-on. The next ball is a no-ball which is driven to the midwicket boundary where Jeremy Bray tries in vain to stop the four. Smith takes a two virtually at will, and is clearly looking to up the net run-rate.

8th over: 43-1
World Cup debutant Paul Mooney replaces DLS in the attack. Let's hope he can make up for his golden duck from earlier - and he nearly bowls Kallis with his first delivery which he nearly chops on, but the ball nutmegs keeper O'Brien (standing up to the stumps in a dark blue helmet) and goes for four. Smith hits over the top but it just evades Johnston at mid-on. Kallis then cover-drives to his favourite boundary for four. So both batsmen nearly got themselves out... but the Proteas survive and take 13 runs from the over, which also included a no-ball.

"I can back James McQuaid up. Tell him it was me driving the drinks cart which had to swerve out of the way while he was making his fine catch in Tesco's car park. (He needs to work on his batting though)"
Pete from Worcester in the TMS inbox

7th over: 30-1
The TMS team are worried about a large South Africa flag (which, let's face it, as national flags go, is as multi-coloured as they come) behind the bowler's arm, but Smith has no complaints, adding another single. Rankin has 1-10 from his four overs.

6th over: 28-1
Smith swings and misses against DLS before showing the full face to drive straight past the bowler for four. DLS aims an air-kick at the turf in frustration. Smith then slightly mistimes an inside-out lofted drive, but it still goes over the long-off boundary rope for four.

"I've enjoyed watching Boyd Rankin bowl as at six foot eight he's awkward to face, and he seems to make things happen"
Arlo White on TMS

5th over: 19-1
Smith faces Rankin for the first time in the innings, and tucks him down to long leg for a single. Kallis finds his favourite boundary again with a cut from a loose delivery. Kallis already up to 14 off 18 balls, while Smith has 4 from 9 balls.

4th over: 12-1
Smith drives one firmly back to DLS who fields well off his own bowling and throws the stumps down, although Smith was safely back. Mello the orange raccoon (the World Cup mascot) is yet again posing for pictures with attractive young women at every opportunity. Kallis then fluently drives DLS to his favourite cover boundary for four.

"If they could get Smith out, it really would be jitter-time in the dressing-room"
Christopher Martin-Jenkins on TMS

3rd over: 7-1
Kallis swishes outside the off-stump and is a whisker away from being caught behind. Rankin is showing no signs of his side strain, and is bowling at an impressive 83mph. A maiden is Rankin's reward. (A maiden over that is).

"I went to sleep after practising leg-spin and ended up having a really vivid dream where I was bowling really controlled leg-spinners to Freddie Flintoff in a field in Northumberland. Then all of a sudden me and Freddie were chased by a massive bull! We had to run and jump over a fence and when I landed on the other side and believing that I was safe from the bull, the bull leaned over the fence and started licking the back of my neck. At that point I woke up with the imagined sensation that it had actually happened and was rubbing my neck. I'm still rubbish at leg-spin though in real life!"
Mark Turnbull, Manchester, in the TMS inbox

2nd over: 7-1
Fresh from his batting heroics, DLS takes the second over and Smith works him well off his legs for a single. Kallis confidently plays him through the covers for four.

"If these clouds gather, this could become a 20-over game, and that will be at the back of their minds"
Barry Richards on TMS

1st over: WICKET - De Villiers c Porterfield b Rankin 0 - SA 1-1
Boyd Rankin may not have batted, but he gets SA off the mark with a wide - and then AB de Villiers square-cuts in the air to Will Porterfield at backward point, who holds it at the second attempt. That's two ducks against associate countries for ABDV, who also failed against the Dutch. Kallis is the new batsman, and Rankin beats him outside the off stump.

"South Africa will know that they have to get their runs as quickly as possible to improve their net run-rate. Graeme Smith is the key, and if he stays in for 20 overs or more, they should have no trouble. But they'll take a lot longer if Smith goes cheaply"
Ex-South Africa batsman Barry Richards on TMS

2027: We have a REVISED TARGET under Duckworth/Lewis - South Africa need 160 to win off their 35 overs under the Duckworth/Lewis method. If you've just got in, there were three rain interruptions during the innings.

"Just before Australia began their run chase against England on that last day of the Adelaide Test, I fell asleep in the hope of waking up during the run chase so I could follow it. I dreamt England had the Aussies 2 for 9 wickets. And then I woke up and the nightmare began..."
Nikki from Reading in the TMS inbox

"I'd have thought that another 30 runs were there to be had. Ireland swiped when they didn't need to"
Colin Croft on TMS

IRELAND INNINGS

35th over: 152-8
Last over. Johnston swings and misses at the first ball before hoisting Hall towards the cover boundary and is brilliantly yet casually caught... by a security steward 10 yards outside the boundary. He and DLS bring up the 150 with two balls remaining, add two more singles to reach a total of 152-8 - but watch out as South Africa's target will be revised under Duckworth/Lewis.

"Sitting in the dressing-room is Boyd Rankin, who has played cricket for Ireland for five years and has only batted twice, without being dismissed"
Ireland manager Roy Torrens on TMS

34th over: 142-8
Dave Langford-Smith (hereafter DLS) comes down the pitch to Langeveldt, but completely misses the ball. But DLS then hoists a huge six into the stands at wide long-on. He tries the same shot again, but it lands between three fielders on the off-side and they take a single. Ireland are then shamefully denied a clear wide by umpire Simon Taufel when Langeveldt strays down the off-side. Another four by DLS past point gives them 12 runs off the over - can they reach 150?

33rd over: 130-8
Johnston looks to unceremoniously heave Hall to cow corner, but mistimes it and can only take a single. Langford-Smith then hesitates over a quick single, but Justin Kemp's throw misses the stumps at the bowler's end.

"Apparently, Ian Bell has been trying some Malinga-style sling-action bowling in the nets, at about 60mph, to help England prepare to face Sri Lanka"
Arlo White on TMS

32nd over: WICKET - Mooney c Boucher b Langeveldt 0 - IRE 126-8
Paul Mooney comes in for his World Cup debut - and departs for a golden duck after gloving Langeveldt to Boucher down the leg side. Not a debut to remember. The big man is now on a hat-trick. Dave Langford-Smith is the new batsman, who nudges it into the off side for a dot ball. He then cuts one delicately to third man, where there's a misfield and they run two, which puts Johnston on strike for the next over.

31.3 overs: WICKET - McCallan c Boucher b Langeveldt 3 - IRE 124-7
Langeveldt returns - will he and Hall wrap up the remaining overs, now that Kemp, Kallis and Smith have completed the "fifth bowler"'s seven-over allocation between them? Ireland's captain and vice-captain try to work the ball around, but McCallan gets a faint edge to Boucher.

"We're trying to get big hits to every ball, and wickets are tumbling"
Ireland manager Roy Torrens on TMS

31st over: WICKET - Botha c De Villiers b Hall 14 - IRE 121-6
Hall's back on, and takes an immediate wicket with a wide half-volley as Botha launches a cover drive which goes straight to AB de Villiers. Vice-captain Kyle McCallan is the new batsman, joining skipper Johnston who gets off the mark with a thump to long-on. Four overs left.

"I definitely recall a dream where I was batting against Courtney Walsh with no padding and nothing but a coat hanger as a bat. I smashed him for a succession of fours too! I always thought he was over-rated"
Dave Langford, 'no relation to Ireland's finest', in the TMS inbox

30th over: 119-5
Kemp's off as Kallis changes ends and he nearly has Botha caught behind, but a single to wide mid-on gets his captain on strike. Kallis bowls a bouncer which beats both batsman and keeper as they run through for a bye.

"Our skipper's getting on a bit, he's in his early 30s and he won't like me saying this, but he's not the best runner between the wickets"
Ireland manager Roy Torrens on TMS

29th over: WICKET - White c Gibbs b Smith 30 - IRE 116-5
Kallis is off after two expensive overs as Graeme Smith attempts to spin the tide with his occasional off-spin. Botha works him down to third man and then falls over when coming back for a second run, but makes his ground safely. White then tries a reverse sweep but misses the ball, and then attempts another which gets him a single to third man. Sadly, White is out tamely as he pops a knee-high full-toss straight to Gibbs at short midwicket. He scored 30 off 30 balls. In comes skipper Trent Johnston.

28th over: 111-4
White survives a strong leg-before shout when he heaves across the line against Kemp. But he then slashes one for four to the point boundary to keep the run-rate up.

"The Irish support out here has been magnificent - we looked down and out against Zimbabwe but they pulled us up and got us a tie. Some of them have gone home and got a bank loan to come back - they'll be back in Barbados, that's for sure. Some women in Dublin haven't seen their husbands for five weeks"
Ireland manager Roy Torrens on TMS

27th over: 104-4
Still Kallis, despite the punishment he took in the last over, and White pulls him to midwicket where it bounces just in front of the diving Hall. Botha then brings up the hundred with an easy single to short third man. Kallis tries a slower ball which White wafts to midwicket for four. A great spell for Ireland if they can keep these two in.

26th over: 96-4
White is looking quite accomplished against the back-up seamers, although he swishes at one outside off-stump but misses completely. Boucher is now standing up to the stumps with a helmet on, and White clips Kemp to square-leg for one. More singles are added - just nine more overs left now (for those of you just coming in, this game was reduced to 35 overs after three rain breaks).

25th over: 91-4
A double change in the bowling with Jacques Kallis the sixth bowler used. However, as many have pointed out, they do not really have a recognised spinner in the line-up. White goes down the wicket and clubs Kallis back over his head for four, before hooking him to fine leg, almost over the wicket-keeper's head. That's eight off two balls, 10 off the over.

"I too recently had a cricketing dream, again playing against Australia (who else), but mine was set in the slightly more conducive grounds of Tesco car park - I was walking out with my shopping and caught Punter one-handed off a rebound from a handy pillar, and was promptly invited to join in. Maybe the WC is having a subliminal effect on our dreams - anyone else care to back this up?"
James McQuaid in the TMS inbox

24th over: 81-4
A change of bowling, and it's the medium-fast Justin Kemp bowling round the wicket to Botha (the fifth left-hander out of the first six). White takes two while Ntini rather dawdles in the field. He wouldn't like people doing that off his bowling, would he?

"Following any other match commentary than Ben Dirs' is like a massive hangover. I need some hair of the Dirs!"
Johann in Reading in the TMS inbox

23rd over: WICKET - O'Brien c Gibbs b Langeveldt 25 - IRE 78-4
O'Brien - who qualifies for England in October under the residency rule - hits down the ground to long-on but only gets a single, and waves to the team's balcony for something. Surely he can't need new gloves already? He looks fine, and lifts Langeveldt down to long-off for four. But it's all over for O'Brien as he mistimes one down the leg side which flies into the air and Gibbs snaffles the catch. The TMS consensus is that if he'd left that one, it would have been called a wide anyway. In comes Andre Botha, and we've got two new batsmen in.

22nd over: 71-3
Hall's tail (if not his towel) is up after getting that wicket, but O'Brien adds three runs before White delicately tickles it off his legs to the fine-leg boundary for four.

"According to our latest weather report, 'Significant convection cells are invading from the south-west'. I think that means it might still rain in the next hour"
Martin Gough, Our Man In Guyana

21st over: 64-3
O'Brien takes a single off the first ball, but the new man White has trouble getting Langeveldt away, so it's just one run from the over.

"Andrew White has been promoted up the order because he's a good striker of the ball, and we don't have too much time here. I like the fact that Smith has a backward square leg, because Andrew doesn't hook!"
Ireland manager Roy Torrens on TMS

20th over: WICKET - Morgan c Prince b Hall 28 - IRE 63-3
Morgan nudges Hall (also going around the wicket) to third man - but South Africa then fail to take advantage of a mix-up which sees Morgan and O'Brien finish up at the same end. O'Brien has to run the entire length of the pitch, Hall shies at the stumps and misses. Hall then digs one in short, Morgan gloves it high into the air and Prince takes the catch on the on-side. Andrew White - a rare sight of a right-hander in the Irish line-up - is the new batsman.

19th over: 60-2
Langeveldt beats O'Brien through the gate with an inswinger and then tests him with some chin music. O'Brien is unmoved, and then hoists the ball to long-off, where it bounces once and goes over the rope for four. This prompts Langeveldt to go round the wicket, and O'Brien opens the face to run him down to third man for a single. Another good over.

18th over: 53-2
Morgan square-drives Hall and it beats Justin Kemp on the point boundary in front of one of the scoreboards. This is better from Ireland. Hall has a small blue towel poking out of the back of his trousers (presumably to dry the ball rather than as a fashion statement), and he tests O'Brien with a fast bouncer before dabbing a single to third man.

17th over: 47-2
Langeveldt sends down a wide before O'Brien finally gets hold of him and hoists him over mid-on for a four. Another edge to third man is cut off by Hall on the boundary as his sunglasses fall off. Sunglasses? On a day like this?

16th over: 40-2
All-rounder Andrew Hall enters the attack, bowling to his former Kent team-mate O'Brien, who's still having trouble timing the ball. A good call from non-striker Morgan ensures they complete a quick single when O'Brien again nearly chops on to his stumps. Morgan then edges Hall to the fine-leg boundary for four.

"Can anyone come up with suitable graphics to help illustrate the live text commentary? I've turned the cloud icon upside down and made it into a crying face"
Paul Limburn, Hitchin, Hertfordshire in the TMS inbox

15th over: 35-2
Swing bowler Charl Langeveldt replaces Pollock, and he immediately induces an edge to third man by Morgan. With the powerplays over, he can put the field back. O'Brien is still waiting to get off the mark and nearly chops on to his stumps. He's then nearly run out as he sets off for a single and is sent back by Morgan, but Herschelle Gibbs fumbles his throw and appears to graze his hand on the pitch. He's also ripped his trousers at the knee. O'Brien is finally off the mark with a single. Langeveldt then raps Morgan on the pad but his appeal is more half-hearted than keeper Boucher's.

14th over: 33-2
It's a Middlesex-Northants combination with Morgan and O'Brien at the crease. Ntini stays on for his last over. O'Brien gets an inside edge onto his pad, but it rolls away safely. A maiden for Ntini as he finishes his spell.

"A couple of days after Old Trafford 2005, I dreamt England were all out for 120 in their first innings at Trent Bridge. I was evidently having a premonition for the wrong Ashes series"
Zoe Parkinson, London in the TMS inbox
[NB All the other cricketing dreams sent in by female viewers have been far too racy to repeat here. Oh, behave]

13th over: WICKET - Porterfield c Kallis b Pollock 14 - IRE 33-2
Pollock stays on for his last over (bowlers now limited to seven each), and Porterfield pulls him for four through square leg. Trying the same shot again, Ntini dives in the deep to restrict him to two. Porterfield then tries one shot too many and is well caught at point by a diving Jacques Kallis. Wicket-keeper Niall O'Brien is the new batsmen, although they crossed on the throw. Another single and a leg bye are added.

12th over: 25-1
Ntini resumes, and just a single and a leg bye are added. Herschelle Gibbs pulls off a good sprawling stop at backward point to evoke memories of his countryman Jonty Rhodes.

1829: We're under way already after nearly two hours off. Here's the info - 35 overs per side, bowlers can bowl a maximum of 7 overs. Powerplay 2 will be 4 overs, there is no powerplay 3, there will be 10 minutes between innings and a revised Duckworth/Lewis target will apply.

1826: Play will hopefully start in a few minutes' time, reduced to 35 overs per side.

1810: Hold your horses (and indeed waterhogs). We may be able to start again in 20 minutes' time. We hope.

1806: Many thanks to Chris Crawshaw for e-mailing in a summary of Einstein's Special Theory of Relativity [see Duckworth/Lewis discussion at 1720] - but I think that may be a tangential discussion too far for a cricket audience!

1800: Right - the tortoise debate has run its course and I'm putting it into hibernation. Here are the last few entries. But have any of you had any cricket-related dreams like Chris [1753 entry] ?

"You ought to be able to be given out in one-day matches for not scoring fast enough - How out? Tortoise - with of course a comic tortoise crawling across the screen"
Chris from Farnborough in the TMS inbox

1753: The covers are being dragged off! I kid you not!

"I thought I'd share a cricketing dream I had the other night: I was batting against Australia (presumably for England) but for some reason it was inside a aeroplane or ship. I scored 11 (including a cracking four) but was bowled out (I think by Glenn McGrath) because there was a large piece of machinery which stopped me from getting in front of the stumps to reach the ball"
Chris Kowal, Kensington, in the TMS inbox

1751: If you're listening to TMS and think you're in Groundhog Day, they are playing a looped summary from Arlo White and John Kenny discussing what's going on - and that we're still waiting for the rain to clear. Normal service will be resumed when the weather improves and we have any prospect of play.

1745: Still raining. For those of you who may just be getting in from work, here's a summary. Ireland are 23-1 after 11 overs, but we've been off for rain (the third such interruption) since around 1630 BST. The covers are on, but if and when we resume, it's likely to be a much-reduced match - even a 20-over game. Both sides need to bat for 20 overs to ensure a result.

To summarise the summary, we're still waiting for play to restart!

"For all you people worried about this not likely to be much of a game, fear not, for Porterfield when he gets going is regarded as our pinch hitter. (You have to pinch yourself if he hits it)"
Stephen Bisset in the TMS inbox

"Why don't both teams pack up and go play 'quick cricket' on the beach in the rain instead?"
Bradders in the TMS inbox

"The Irish will creep through on the basis of draws, washouts and good luck. They'll be the cricket equivalent of Greece in Euro 2002"
Jonathan in Holborn (London), in the TMS inbox

1737: The covers are still on, Colin Croft's beloved waterhogs [see earlier] are working hard, as are the ground staff with some large white sponges. The rain has momentarily stopped, but skies are still grey and there is still plenty of water on top of the covers.

"How's this for irony? I'm in the Caribbean for the whole of the WC, but still have to follow the matches on the web, because I work on an American ship which doesn't show the matches. Great, eh?"
Pete Gibbin, Barbados, in the TMS inbox

"We're hoping for play later on - it may even be a 20-over game. But that would be dependent on the rain ceasing. The covers are on, there is some surface water, but the ICC want to get as many games as possible played during the scheduled day"
Arlo White on TMS

"Why not have fielding restrictions (or even three mandatory slips) that last the whole match? It would encourage the development of attacking bowlers and tactics. We might even see swing re-emerge in the ilk of the great Waqar Younis"
David from Melbourne, Australia in the TMS inbox

1731: TMS is back on the radio, but it's still raining. Honest.

"As an Irishman living in England it's good to hear John Kenny on the radio. I got married to a lovely English girl who hates cricket on 17 March... in 20 years' time I won't remember that Ireland lost the Six Nations rugby on my wedding day, but I will remember that Ireland beat Pakistan in World Cup cricket!"
Conor Considine in the TMS inbox

"I don't agree with the sentiment that it's a batsman's game and the bowlers will lose interest. It doesn't matter how much the rules favour the batsmen, if all else is equal, the side with better bowlers will still win, even if they are going for 20 an over"
Tony Adlam in the TMS inbox

1720: A member of the management team has just reminded me that links such as the Duckworth/Lewis one below are not much help to any of you out there reading this on your mobile phones. Given that the D/L system (as amended in 2003) is now so fiendishly difficult that when it is used at matches, only a computer can be used to work out the calculations - but a very, very brief summary of it would be as follows:

However, the rules are applied slightly differently whether it's the team batting first or second that is affected - and I'm sure Einstein's Special Theory of Relativity would be equally difficult to try and condense into one or two sentences...

"With the amount of rain the Caribbean seems to be getting at this World Cup, we'd probably see more action if it was held in the Emerald Isle!"
Rob, Cambridge, in the TMS inbox

1709: To head off all the e-mails asking about how the Duckworth-Lewis system evolved and how it works, I recommend this link to you (website users only I'm afraid):

"Rain starting to soak into the outfield now, with puddles visible around the covers"
BBC Sport's Martin Gough, Our Man In Guyana

"More Graham Greene cricket stories: Loser Takes All? The Comedians?"
Adam, Shropshire, in the TMS inbox

1700: TMS has gone off-air while we await the end of this downpour. However, I'm still metaphorically manacled to my desk - and will keep you posted if I hear anything more. Plus, there's still a huge backlog of your e-mails...

1653: Still raining. CMJ on TMS fears a long stoppage. Here's some more tortoise name suggestions:

"I want to know what the procedure is if a fellow groundsman falls and is trapped underneath the tarp - is your priority to the wicket or your mate?"
Leigh from Rugby in the TMS inbox

"Sorry Arlo, SA went top of the ODI rankings because NZ beat the Aussies 3-0"
Eli Madar in the TMS inbox

"In the spirit of making this more of a match, should South Africa be fined 50 runs for not even bothering to play a spinner?"
Rachel in the TMS inbox

1642: Still raining, and TMS are discussing the future of one-day cricket.

"I'd like to see a change in one-day cricket, with your best two bowlers bowling 25 of the overs - for example Pollock bowling 13 and Ntini 12, then two bowlers bowling 10 each, and the fifth bowler bowling just five. There would be no powerplays and a minimum length of the outfield. The 15-yard restriction is difficult when you've got someone like Jayasuriya batting, as it's too close. Everyone wants to see runs, but if in 20 years you've got no bowlers, what will you do?"
Barry Richards on TMS

"Can the IT Man from Warwickshire [see 1551 entry] please come to Barclays House in Poole and sort out our access please? I agree cricket is more important that monthly results! If this could be completed before 2.30 tomorrow afternoon I would be very grateful!"
Anonymous of Dorset in the TMS inbox

"Marcus Trescothick was indeed at our lovely cricket club, Hampset, on Sunday. He helicoptered in with Ian Blackwell in Andrew Caddick's helicopter (not a sentence I ever imagined saying). He did seem quite happy although his slip fielding was not up to its usual standards"
Tim Lunnon in the TMS inbox

1633: The rain appears heavier than at any previous stage during the day. It's chucking it down, the skies look very dark and the groundstaff are certainly earning their proverbial corn.

11th over: RAIN STOPS PLAY - IRE 23-1
Second powerplay taken. Pollock finds the edge of Morgan, but it trickles past the slips down to third man for a single. They finish the over - and then the rain restarts and the covers are back on.

"The only chance of Ireland getting something out of this game is if the umpires deem the match unplayable and call for a game of touch rugby"
Andy Hunt in the TMS inbox

10th over: 19-1
Match reduced to 47 overs per team. Ntini now has four balls to complete his over from nearly an hour, and Morgan shoulders arms to the first before pulling the bat away from the second. Ntini has three slips in, although he strays with a couple of wides. SA then appeal for a catch behind but Simon Taufel is unmoved - rightly - and we finally finish the 10th over nearly an hour after we started it.

1623: We're about to resume - we'll have lost around 50 minutes.

"For over a year I was telling people to have a bet on the Irish getting to the second phase. Foolishly I didn't have a bet and for the last couple of weeks I have felt like I've dropped a sitter for not putting my money where my mouth is"
Thomas Moffatt, Isle of Man, in the TMS inbox

1621: SA still warming up, no sign of the batsmen yet. A few of the 3,000 expected schoolchildren have arrived at the ground.

Here's a few more tortoise name suggestions:

1615: Even if we start straight away, the game will be reduced to 47 overs per side. The lunch interval gets reduced as well, worst luck.

1614: The South Africans are practising on the outfield and the stump camera is being replaced.

1611: Covers are off, but the rain is still spitting on the sightscreen.

"I've noticed there are what appears to be two return creases marked on the wickets. What is the significance?"
Gordon Davidson, Aberdeen, in the TMS inbox

1605: It's still raining in Guyana, you're missing nothing.

"Judging by his bibliography, Graham Greene did write plenty of cricket related stuff such as "The Captain and the Enemy" and "The Third Man"
Alistair Campbell, Edinburgh [That Alistair Campbell? Surely not] in the TMS inbox

"Just my luck, I pick Kallis and Boucher for my fantasy team expecting this to be a run-fest now they probably won't even get a bat. Lets hope Kallis gets a five-for and Boucher catches them all!"
Mark Schofield in the TMS inbox

"The 5+0 is worn by South Africans in memory of Hansie Cronje, as Cronje usually wore the number "5" on his back. Currently the number '5' is not worn by other South African players as a mark of respect. Some have worn "05" or "5+0", but not "5" on its own"
Mike Finch, London, in the TMS inbox

"The large mechanical devices which get the water off the outfield are called waterhogs. There are other smaller ones, which are pushed by hand, to take rain off the top of the covers, and I call them water-piglets"
Colin Croft on TMS

1553: The rain has lessened a bit - but it's still raining.

"South Africa are probably ranked as number one in the ODI world rankings because of England beating Australia in the CB Series"
Arlo White on TMS

1551: Still raining, and the TV has switched to showing highlights of a previous game - always a bad sign. Here's some more name suggestions for Matthew's friend's new tortoise:

"I am an IT contractor and look after the network security for a large real estate company. Currently there are 197 employees listening from this company in the EU. Normally I would ban access to the webcast due to it affecting the company networks but as I'm a big cricket fan I've decided it's more important that people hear the cricket than do some work"
Name and e-mail address supplied, Warwickshire, in the TMS inbox

1544: Yet another set of covers on. The rain is a lot heavier now say the TMS team. Colin Croft expects them to be off for at least half-an-hour to 45 minutes.

"Someone I know saw Marcus Trescothick at a cricket ground in Bath on Sunday. Looking in good spirits and looking forward to the new season with Somerset. I am sure England wish he was opening the batting in the World Cup"
Lawrence Green in the TMS inbox

1541: More covers come on to protect the bowlers' run-ups as more rain comes in from the east.

"Anyone else think that the less time played, the more chance Ireland have of getting something?"
Sam Hutchinson, Burnley, in the TMS inbox

1538: The TMS team are debating ground staff protocol - Arlo White and Colin Croft both prefer it when a smaller tarp is brought on immediately to cover the wicket (as has happened at other grounds), before the bigger one comes on to cover the whole square. Basically, this one is too big and too heavy.

9.2 overs: RAIN STOPS PLAY - IRE 17-1
Morgan withdraws the bat late to Ntini's first two balls before it drizzles again, Simon Taufel offers it to the batsmen, and they come off. The ground staff are rather caught on the hop, and one of them is momentarily trapped below the large blue tarp.

"My kids just love saying dibblydobblys, they are running around the house shouting it over and over again"
Matt Payne in the TMS inbox

9th over: 17-1
Four balls needed to complete Pollock's over. (We lost about 15 minutes if anyone's interested). Porterfield blocks it out, and Pollock has tidy figures of 5-2-6-1.

1529: Covers are off, here come the umpys. Here are a few more suggested names for Matthew's friend's tortoise...

1525: It seems to be brightening up - might the covers come off?

"Looks like the rain could get heavier before we see any action. Still just the light covers at the moment but don't hold your breath"
BBC Sport's Martin Gough, Our Man In Guyana

"Whether Ireland can eventually become a Test-playing nation I'm not sure, but it's not going to happen for a while yet - whether the will is there is another matter"
John Kenny on TMS

8.2 overs - RAIN STOPS PLAY - IRE 17-1
After two balls - a dot and a single - the rain gets heavy enough for the umpires to signal for the covers to come on. The large blue tarpaulin, which covers the square, takes no fewer than 17 ground staff to carry on.

8th over: 16-1
Ntini goes close as Morgan just evades one which bounces. He manages a single off the last ball of the over. There's rain in the air. Oh dear.

The inbox has been flooded with suggestions for a name for Matthew's friend's tortoise [see earlier]. Here are the first few:

7th over: 15-1
A slightly better over for South Africa as Porterfield is content to defend his stumps against Pollock. A maiden in fact.

6th over: 15-1
Another edge from Morgan sneaks through the same slip area for four. Morgan then takes a quick single into the covers, Porterfield pushes one into the on-side and suddenly the score looks a lot healthier for Ireland.

5th over: 9-1
Porterfield adds another single. Morgan then gets an edge through the slips - a difficult chance just in front of Justin Kemp at first slip - for a single.

"Pollock is tailing it back into the left-handers. He might give away a few runs on the leg side, but he might get a few lbws. He can also slant it across towards the slips, but I'd like to see a gully in there"
Ex-South Africa batsman Barry Richards on TMS

4th over: 7-1
Another leg-glance from Morgan for the first boundary of the innings as Ntini strays down the leg side.

3rd over: WICKET - Bray lbw b Pollock 0 - IRE 3-1
Pollock beats Bray's outside edge again. He thinks about a leg bye before Ashwell Prince - sporting an unusual 5+0 squad number, swoops in to prevent a run. He then hits Bray on the pad - and it's all over for the opener as he's pretty well plumb lbw. He's replaced by Eoin Morgan, who glances to long leg for a single which gets his country off the mark. Porterfield then troubles the scorers for the first time with a two.

"I think Ireland had to win the toss and field first if they were to have any real chance"
Christopher Martin-Jenkins on TMS

2nd over: 0-0
There's a distinct Warwickshire air about the SA new-ball pairing as Makhaya Ntini charges in to William Porterfield, the second of Ireland's five left-handers at the top of the order, and gets a bit of lift as Smith brings in a third slip. But Ireland captain Trent Johnston said he hopes his side can survive the new ball, and they're doing fine so far. Another maiden.

1st over: 0-0
Shaun Pollock takes the new ball, and opener Jeremy Bray just manages to resist playing at the first ball outside off stump. Bray negotiates the rest of the over, and Pollock begins with a maiden after taking a bit of punishment earlier in the tournament.

"The conditions today are similar to what SP might expect in Durban - overcast, with a lot of humidity in the air. He can't bowl as quickly as he would like, but length and line are the key for him"
Ex-West Indies pace bowler Colin Croft on TMS

1444: Here come the SA fielders, led by skipper Smith. Under way imminently.

1441: Still on to start at 1445. Here are the full teams:

Ireland: JP Bray, WTS Porterfield, EJG Morgan, NJ O'Brien (wk), AR White, AC Botha, DT Johnston (capt), WK McCallan, PJK Mooney, D Langford-Smith, WB Rankin.

South Africa: GC Smith (capt), AB de Villiers, JH Kallis, HH Gibbs, AG Prince, MV Boucher (wk), JM Kemp, SM Pollock, AJ Hall, M Ntini, CK Langeveldt.

Umpires: Daryl Harper and Simon Taufel. Third ump is ex-Kent and England opener Mark Benson.

"Pleased to see the Mighty Proteas win the toss and field. Now let's see them skittle out the plucky Boys in Green and then pour it on with the bat as they march on to World Cup glory!"
Chris Baldwin in the TMS inbox

"Whilst we wait for the start of play - my friend is getting a tortoise today, and she needs a name for it. Any ideas?"
Matthew, Sunderland in the TMS inbox

Not sure, Matthew. Would it be judged as animal cruelty to call it Chris Tavare? Any other ideas - let's have those e-mails...

1432: South Africa have won the toss and will field first. They bring in an extra batsman, Ashwell Prince, for Robin Peterson. The Mooney/O'Brien change for Ireland is confirmed.

"The heavens haven't exactly opened, but they're threatening to. When it rains in Guyana it really hoses down - let's hope it doesn't."
Arlo White on TMS

1424: The toss will take place at 1430 with a view to starting at 1445, say the TMS team. OMIG adds that "showers (are) predicted through the morning - it still looks pretty hazy to the east". Gulp.

"Ireland need someone who can bowl at the death, and Paul Mooney might fill that role"
John Kenny on TMS

1422: "They have rolled the covers back now and it looks like we'll get some action soon" says OMIG.

1419: Players are practising on the outfield. Officials are deciding whether to take the covers off.

1415: The shower is "passing through" according to Our Man In Guyana (OMIG).

1405: It's official - start delayed by rain.

1402: The toss looks like it will be delayed as there's a shower coming. But we do have a bit of pre-toss team news - with Ireland set to bring in seamer Paul Mooney for all-rounder Kevin O'Brien.

1400: A very good afternoon to you all - I'm afraid we could be at the mercy of the rain today.