Another nervy day of checking weather apps and interpreting cloud formations awaits England and Australia after a truncated Saturday in which Joe Root produced a breakthrough that could yet prove pivotal to the destiny of the Ashes.

Soggy scenes at Old Trafford pushed back the start time on the fourth day and, when play eventually got under way at 2.45pm, the precipitation was followed by two hours of frustration for the hosts. Marnus Labuschagne pushed back on their hopes of a victory charge with only his second Test century on foreign soil.

Resuming on 44 with Mitch Marsh on one, Australia 113 for four and still 162 in arrears in the third innings, Labuschagne was batting with impressive tunnel vision. He had shaken off the pain of a vicious blow to the finger from Mark Wood, harvested his runs adroitly, and at 211 for no further loss was tightening his side’s grip on the urn.

But moments after punching Moeen Ali into the off side to reach three-figures – vindication for his intense training before this Test match – Labuschagne went to cut Root behind square, only for the ball to bounce a touch more, hit the gloves of Jonny Bairstow and be gobbled up by the wicketkeeper at the second attempt.

England’s appeals were vociferous, the umpire, Nitin Menon, shook his head, and yet the review that followed confirmed he had smashed it. Labuschagne, one of the more reluctant batters on the circuit when it comes to walking off, had to go, out for 111 from 173 balls to provide the twist that 20,000 patient spectators had been yearning for.

Root’s celebration was intense, that typically friendly face flush with borderline rage and summing up the tension that had built. But then his bowling was impressively intense too, Root nearly producing a follow-up off Marsh – the ball just evading Harry Brook at short leg – and being convinced he had removed Cameron Green, caught off the final ball of the session, only for England’s review to be struck down.

The upshot to all this was that Australia, 214 for five after a day of only 30 overs, will resume on day five still 61 runs in arrears. The forecast is once again dismal but then it was today, with England now chasing five quick wickets to level this series and prevent Pat Cummins and his players retaining the Ashes with a match to spare.

That Root was bowling in the final stages of this single session was something of a curio. England’s four frontline seamers had struggled to produce much threat bar Wood’s short balls, the combination of a wet outfield’s deadening effect on the ball and a pitch still playing true in the main allowing Labuschagne and Marsh to hunker down.

But 90 minutes into proceedings the ever-wily Stuart Broad spotted the ball was out of shape, prompting the arrival of a harder replacement that started to move a fraction for Jimmy Anderson. Ben Stokes sensed his chance to bring back Wood and some slips, only for the officials to deem the light was poor and only spinners were permitted.

Joel Wilson, the second umpire out in the middle, made for a slightly bizarre sight, Elwood Blues in dark glasses in the supposed dark. And this enforced tactic produced chances but also leaked runs, with the slightly wayward Moeen still getting the odd one to spit out of the rough and Root attacked by Labuschagne but also creating little moments at the other end.

The highlight here was a delightful, almost retro arm-ball in response to a couple of commanding straight sixes from Labuschagne, one that swung lavishly and took the edge of his bat on 93 only to burst through Crawley at slip. Root eventually got his man though, Bairstow continuing his resurgence in this Test match with a smart take.

Should Australia escape from this match with the draw that secures the urn, they will owe Labuschagne a few cold ones. The tourists were a distant second over the course of the first three days of this fourth Test, buffeted by England’s 592 all out, and yet their No 3 produced an innings that cut against the trend of their overall form.

The same goes for Marsh, a player who entered the series with a run‑a‑ball century at Headingley but, bar one early swipe that eluded Moeen in the deep, was happy to rein in his attacking instincts here. His role in a 103-run stand with Labuschagne was critical and he remained 31 not out from 107 balls when the rain returned.

It may also be that Australia’s decision to eschew the spin of Todd Murphy ends up paying off, even if the bite Moeen and Root were getting from the pitch still made it a fundamentally duff one. By playing both all-rounders, Marsh and Green, and moving Alex Carey down to No 8, they have given England a trickier assignment should the weather on the final day not prove as poor as predicted.