South Africa quicks Kagiso Rabada and Anrich Nortje rock England in first Test at Lord's

South Africa seamers Kagiso Rabada and Anrich Nortje did the damage as England slumped to 116-6 before heavy rain forced an early end to the opening day of the first Test at Lord's on Wednesday.

Rabada, passed fit following an ankle injury, removed openers Alex Lees and Zak Crawley early on during a return of 2-36 in 12 overs.

And Nortje, one of eight South Africans playing their first Test in England, grabbed three wickets, including the scalp of home captain Ben Stokes.

Only Ollie Pope, with an unbeaten 61, offered prolonged resistance before rain arrived half an hour after lunch.

Following weeks of searing temperatures in England, Wednesday's bad weather meant only 32 overs were possible before play was halted early in the second session, by which time South Africa had still ripped through the top order.

"There was a bit in the wicket today and I think we got rewards for putting the ball in the right areas," said the 27-year-old Rabada, now in his 53rd Test.

England's plight would have been considerably worse but for Pope.

"I thought he was fantastic today. Our mantra of trying to put the opposition under pressure, he did that brilliantly," said assistant coach Paul Collingwood.

The former England all-rounder insisted the team's aggressive batting approach was "not going to change".

"The one thing when you are on wickets with lots of assistance, you don't want the bowler to think he can put it in the same area and get results," he added.

England came into the game with a perfect record of four wins from as many Tests under their new leadership pairing of Stokes and coach Brendon McCullum.

MOST RUNS IN ENGLAND V INDIA SERIES: Haseeb Hameed (England): 140 runs at an average of 28.00 from three matches. High score: 66.