MANCHESTER, August 4: England captain Joe Root won the toss and elected to bat against South Africa in the fourth and final test at Old Trafford on Thursday.
England lead 2-1 after a convincing win in the third test at the Oval and are hoping for a first series win at home to the South Africans since 1998.
The play was due to start on time in blustery conditions, rain in Manchester this week has left the outfield damp.
England eight wickets from winning fourth test and series
England kept the same side that won at the Oval but South Africa had to do without pacemen Vernon Philander and Chris Morris, both suffering from injuries.
Theunis de Bruyn and Duanne Olivier were the replacements.
"It looks a good wicket and we've had some success batting first, so hopefully we'll make a good score," Root said.
Teams
England: Alastair Cook, Keaton Jennings, Tom Westley, Joe Root (captain), Dawid Malan, Ben Stokes, Jonny Bairstow (wicket-keeper), Moeen Ali, Toby Roland-Jones, Stuart Broad, James Anderson
South Africa: Dean Elgar, Heino Kuhn, Hashim Amla, Quinton de Kock (wicketkeeper), Faf du Plessis (captain), Temba Bavuma, Theunis de Bruyn, Keshav Maharaj, Kagiso Rabada, Duanne Olivier, Morne Morkel
