The fifth and final T20I between India and England in Southampton witnessed an unusual start on Saturday, July 11, as the toss was delayed after the Indian team got caught in heavy traffic while travelling to the stadium.Β Originally scheduled for 6:30 PM IST, the toss had to be pushed back after Team India reached the venue at approximately 6:36 PM IST.
Match officials later confirmed that the toss would take place at 7:15 PM IST, with the start of play delayed by 30 minutes to 7:30 PM IST. The rare incident quickly became a talking point across social media, with cricket fans reacting humorously to the unexpected delay. Traffic-related toss delays are almost unheard of in international cricket, prompting several witty posts online.
One fan joked, “And we thought Bengaluru traffic was the worst. At least the toss is never delayed because of it.” Another user sarcastically wrote, “Imagine if England had been stuck in traffic in India. The English media would have declared it the end of civilization.” A third fan added, “If Jay Shah was there, he might have airlifted the entire team.”
And we thought Bangalore traffic is the worst, atleast Toss is never delayed due to it. https://t.co/I7doQt1vk5
β Saurabh Mishra (@FlautistSaurabh) July 11, 2026
What the Hell is this We Never seen this in India But This happened in England π
UPDATE π¨
Toss Delayed in Southampton! β³
The toss for the fifth T20I between England and India has been delayed due to the Indian team bus getting stuck in traffic. ππ¦#ENGvIND #T20Is #Cricketβ Mr Perfect π€ (@StarManjeet008) July 11, 2026
Traffic ki waha se toss delayed?
Match Bangalore mai ho rha hai kya #ENGvINDβ sourabh (@sourabh_kuki) July 11, 2026
Toss at 7.15pm IST.
Start of play at 7.30pm IST. pic.twitter.com/BpZ0kZYMXb
β Mufaddal Vohra (@mufaddal_vohra) July 11, 2026
Apparently Indian team got struck in traffic and toss got delayed. Hillarious π
β Rahul (@Rahul_K0711) July 11, 2026
The toss has been delayed in Southampton due to traffic, of all things.
Imagine the scenes if that happened in the subcontinent.pic.twitter.com/LNS68Fzi4z
β Cricketopia (@CricketopiaCom) July 11, 2026
First in my bloodline to witness a toss being delayed because of traffic. https://t.co/kfxQmcH8FU
β Akul (π¨π»10) (@Loyalsachfan10) July 11, 2026
The delayed start came with India already trailing 3-0 in the five-match T20I series. The opening match was washed out due to rain, while England dominated the next three games to seal the series well before the finale.
When the toss finally took place, India captain Shreyas Iyer won the coin flip and elected to bowl first, hoping to finish the tour’s T20I leg on a positive note by avoiding a 4-0 series defeat.
India also made two changes to their playing XI. Experienced wicketkeeper-batter Sanju Samson returned to the side in place of 15-year-old opener Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, while young all-rounder Suryansh Shedge replaced Washington Sundar.
India Playing XI: Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson, Ishan Kishan, Shreyas Iyer (captain), Tilak Varma, Shivam Dube, Suryansh Shedge, Axar Patel, Arshdeep Singh, Prince Yadav and Prasidh Krishna.
