India's World Cup clash against New Zealand rained off at Trent Bridge

Rain proved the winner as India's World Cup clash against New Zealand was washed out without a ball bowled.

Four games have now been called off in seven days in this tournament - a World Cup record - with Trent Bridge the latest ground to suffer at the hands of inclement weather, due to intermittent rain and a sodden outfield.

Any hope of play receded as the day progressed, but it was not until 3pm - four and a half hours after the scheduled start time - that the teams, who each took a point, shook hands.

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Heavy clouds hung in the air when the toss was scheduled to take place at 10am, but the sheer volume of rain in the preceding 24 hours meant a 10.30am pitch inspection and a delayed start.

Regular showers hindered the ground staff's tireless efforts as further inspections were called on an hourly basis until 2.30pm, when it was announced the umpires would survey the scene half an hour later.

But any raised hopes of action were quickly extinguished by yet more rain fall as the match was called off.

New Zealand remain top of the group stage table on seven points, with India, on five, moving up to third.

"It's a sensible decision to not play, given the outfield wasn't fully fit," said India captain Virat Kohli. "One point not a bad thing for sides that have won all their games so far. So we'll take it."

New Zealand skipper Kane Williamson was not too worried and welcomed the gap before facing South Africa on Wednesday.

"We've been about four days and we haven't seen the sun, so this doesn't surprise us. It's not ideal, but little bit of time off is also important," Williamson said.

"We have some break now midway through, so it's a good chance for the guys to freshen up and look forward to the next challenge.

"South Africa is a very good side, we know every time we play them, they're extremely competitive, but we have a few days to refresh and come back."

Watch England take on West Indies in the 2019 Cricket World Cup live from 10am on Friday on Sky Sports Cricket and Main Event.