Everybody's ears and Tahir's ankle

Blimey, the quintessential peace and tranquility of an English cricket ground? Not 'ere.

A third of Old Trafford, between the pavilion and the Stretford End, is under reconstruction with sporadic bursts of very loud drilling noise. Anyone who spends the day fielding on that boundary will end it with a splitting headache. On the other side of the ground, meanwhile, a herd of JCBs and more drills are at work building a new tram station and making plenty of noise about it along the way.

"You're lucky," a local correspondent has just observed. "They've just finished taking down the temporary stage for Coldplay. It was a three-way assault on the lug-oles."

Naqaash Tahir has reported a sore ankle and is unlikely to play.