An extraordinary swarm of ladybirds brought an abrupt end to Thursday's play at Lord's, denying Joe Root the chance to complete his century as he was left stranded on 99 not out.
The bizarre interruption occurred late in the day with Ben Stokes on strike, as the insects descended on the outfield and forced the players to halt proceedings. The unusual stoppage meant only 83 of the scheduled 90 overs were bowled.
England closed on 251 for four, with Root agonisingly short of what would have been his 37th Test hundred. Stokes remained unbeaten on 39 at the other end, though concerns emerged over the England captain's fitness after he appeared to struggle with a groin injury during the evening session.
The incident left players and spectators bewildered, with India's Jasprit Bumrah spotted attempting to escape the insects. Ollie Pope, England's vice-captain, expressed his astonishment at the unprecedented disruption.
Indian bowler Jasprit Bumrah was seen trying to swat the bugs away
Sky Sports
"No I haven't (seen that before). It's a first and the crowd got that. I didn't even know why we stopped," said Pope when questioned about the peculiar interruption.
The ladybird invasion added to what proved a challenging day for both sides, with injury concerns mounting alongside the unusual wildlife interference. The swarm's timing proved particularly frustrating for Root, who had battled through the day and appeared set to reach three figures before the insects intervened.
The stoppage ultimately cost seven overs of play, leaving Root to contemplate an anxious night before resuming his innings on Friday morning.
Both teams face significant injury worries heading into day two. Stokes' groin problem became increasingly apparent as the evening progressed, with the England captain visibly struggling during the final session.
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Ben Stokes struggled amongst the bizarre attack
Sky Sports
"Fingers crossed it's nothing too serious but clearly we've got a big test over the next four days and another big two Test matches coming up too so it's important to try and manage him and we'll see how he pulls up (in the morning)," Pope said.
The vice-captain acknowledged his responsibility in monitoring Stokes' condition. "That's partially one of my roles (as vice-captain) to make sure he doesn't push himself to a ridiculous place with whatever he's dealing with at the moment," he added.
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India's concerns centre on wicketkeeper Rishabh Pant, who injured his finger and spent most of the day off the field. Dhruv Jurel took over keeping duties as substitute, with the tourists planning to assess Pant's fitness on Friday morning.
Pope, who was dropped first ball before making 44 in a 109-run partnership with Root, suggested the England number four would face a restless night.
"I don't think he's the best sleeper anyway," said Pope. "Obviously he would have loved to have walked off with a hundred but the bloke's got 36 of them so I don't think he'll be too sleepless. His plans will be to try and make it a monster innings so he'll get his head down for sure."
Joe Root was surrounded by bugs as play had to be stopped
Getty
England's scoring rate of just over three runs per over marked a departure from their typically aggressive approach. Pope acknowledged the adjustment was necessary given the conditions.
"It's not necessarily the way we're used to going about a first innings but it's a pretty good score at the minute," said Pope.
"We'd have liked more runs but the nature of the surface and the way the Indian attack bowled was pretty good throughout."