ENG v WI 2020: The Rose Bowl Southampton, pitch report and weather conditions

The circular amphitheater of Southampton's Rose Bowl, also known as The Ageas Bowl, will play host to an exciting clash between England and West Indies for the first Test of the three-match Test series. The long-awaited game marks the return of international Cricket to cricketing turfs after it came to a standstill due to the coronavirus pandemic.

With the first Test commencing this Thursday, the two perennial foes will kick-start an unusual summer of international Cricket. England will be without their beloved fans, often their 12th man in home Tests.

England have not lost a Test at The Rose Bowl

The Rose Bowl, Hampshire's fourth home, has been a happy hunting ground for the hosts and they have not lost a Test match there yet. England have played three matches at the venue, triumphing in two and drawing one. Toss has always played a crucial role in Southampton and England have won the coin-flick on all three occasions.

The Rose Bowl tracks are traditionally known to be conducive towards spin-bowling. The last Test match played here was back in 2018 against India in which Moeen Ali entangled the Indian batsmen with the ball in hand and dragged the hosts to a memorable victory. Spinners, in general, are known to attain success while bowling on these decks.

However, this is the start of the English summer and there haven’t been any county games played at the Rose Bowl. So, the surface might just have a little bit of extra zip in it to start things off. With the likes of Jofra Archer, Kemar Roach, and Shannon Gabriel in the mix, the pitch is likely to offer that extra juice and trouble the batsmen early on. The captain winning the toss will probably want to field first and exploit anything that is on offer.

The weather in Southampton is expected to remain cloudy during the course of the match with no rain on the radar. Mild temperatures in the range of 12 degrees Celsius to 18 degrees Celsius are predicted, making for just about perfect Test cricket conditions.