Why India have a massive advantage in their T20 World Cup semi-final with England as Jos Buttler's side eye second consecutive title

• England are set to take on India in the second semi-final in Guyana
• There is a serious threat of rain in the area ahead of their clash
• There is no reserve day scheduled in the event that the match day is washed out 

England may not have started their T20 World Cup campaign with a bang as they found themselves staring down the barrel of elimination in the initial group stage.

Their opening game of the tournament was rained off before they suffered a heavy defeat at the hands of Australia.

But they managed to right the ship and navigate their way through the group stage with wins over Oman and Namibia as they squeaked through to the Super 8s.

Their performances in the second phase of the tournament were far more positive as they secured convincing wins over the West Indies and United States either of a narrow loss to South Africa saw them finish second.

Their opponents, India, have had a much simpler time of it and are undefeated on their way to topping their Super 8s group.

England's opening match against Scotland was washed out due to rain and their semi-final with India is similarly threatened by the weather

India have eased their way into the semi-final as they are yet to lose a single game

Chris Jordan's incredible over against the United States that saw him take four wickets from five balls helped England into the semi-final with a big victory

That has given them another significant advantage in their semi-final clash with England later today.

Having already been washed out once, England are under threat of seeing their game being rendered unplayable by the weather again.

What is the weather forecast for Georgetown, Guyana?

According to the Met Office there is a significant chance of rain showers in the area around the time the match is scheduled to get underway of 10:30am local time.

However, it is worth noting that none of the five games Guyana has hosted during this tournament have been rained off, though the last of which was over two weeks ago.

The overall forecast though is far better than initially feared as the suggestion of thunderstorms seems to have given way to showers, changing to cloudy in the afternoon.

What are the rules if it does rain?

The first thing to note is that unlike yesterday's semi-final between South Africa and Afghanistan, there is no reserve day for England's match with India.

There is an extra 250 minutes available to finish the match should it be impacted by the weather but that is on the same day.

If the game cannot be completed due to poor weather, then India would advance to the final of the T20 World cup to take on the Proteas.

India's advantage comes by virtue of finishing top of their Super 8s group and England playing second.

Section 13.6.2.1 of the ICC's playing conditions for the tournament states: 'The Final on 29 June will have a reserve day on 30 June. The semi-finals will each have additional time added in order to complete the match which will total 250 minutes.

'For the first semi-final on 26 June, 60 minutes will be available at the end of the day's play with the remaining 190 minutes scheduled for 2pm on 27 June.

'Whilst the additional 250 minutes for the second semi-final scheduled on 27 June will be utilised if needed through extended playing hours on the scheduled day.'

Why are England playing in the second semi-final?

India have been billeted for the Guyana semi-final ever since the World Cup schedule was drawn up - a pre-arrangement not afforded any other team in the competition.

The Trinidad game starts at 8.30pm local time, which is an ungodly 6am in India. The Guyana game, on the other hand, begins at 10am in South America - perfect for India’s evening audience.

As England dropped to a second-placed finish in Group 2 of the Super 8s that ensured they would also be in semi-final two with India who topped Group 1.

Read more