Rain stumps Australia's quest for T20 victory

Rain thwarted Australia's bid to win a first Twenty20 international in six matches after their series opener against England ended in a no-result washout at Old Trafford here on Sunday.

Australia were well on top, having reduced England to four for two in the second over, in pursuit of a victory target of 146, when a heavy downpour stopped play.

Although England needed only to bat for five overs for a result to be declared under the Duckworth-Lewis method for weather-affected fixtures, a fresh burst of rain as the umpires were inspecting the ground prevented play resuming by the scheduled cut-off time of 1710GMT.

The second and final match of this series is at Old Trafford on Tuesday.

Australia, who had lost their previous five Twenty20 matches, were indebted to Cameron White's 55 for a total of 145 for four after losing the toss in overcast conditions.

White, dropped on 12 by debutant Joe Denly, shared a fourth-wicket stand of 78 with Michael Clarke, Australia's captain in the absence of resting regular skipper Ricky Ponting.

The duo came together after England captain Paul Collingwood took two wickets in three balls to leave Australia struggling at 54 for three in the ninth over.