It means England's hopes of salvaging a draw have been vastly increased.

South Africa took England apart after winning the toss to reach 398 for one by the close, Herschelle Gibbs scoring a brilliant 179 while captain Graeme Smith finished unbeaten on 178.

But drizzle throughout the day forced umpires Venkat and Daryl Harper to abandon play at 3.15pm having inspected the damp surface at regular intervals throughout the day.

The 18,000 crowd who had bought advance tickets will now be entitled to a full refund, which will cost the England and Wales Cricket Board around £550,000 in revenue.

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