A policeman lies injured at the Nehru stadium

But he refused to condone the violence which followed the abandonment.

Strauss, who was set to be captain for the day, said: "No-one likes to see things get out of hand like that.

"It was obvious even as we left there were portions of the crowd who were pretty frustrated that there wasn't any cricket being played."

The players left the ground with an armed guard as soon as the announcement that no play would be possible was made.

About 100 police were then involved in trying to quell angry fans who had waited for nearly five hours to see some action.

Simon Mann's view on Guwahati trouble

Tear gas was fired to disperse them and at least 12 people were injured, including three policemen.

"You can understand [the frustration] because they had been there for a long time and it wasn't raining," Strauss said.

"From the outside it looked like the conditions were right for cricket."

Strauss denied a claim by the Assam Cricket Association that the teams had been prepared to play a shortened game.

"It's a real shame for the spectators but obviously the players have got to take their own safety into account," he said.

"The bowlers' run ups were very wet with the potential for bowlers to do themselves damage. It only takes one slip and you can damage yourself pretty badly.

"It just wasn't fit enough to play a one-day international which was a shame. It robbed everyone of a good game of cricket."

England are 4-0 down in the series with only two games left and Strauss said the team wanted to end the tour on a high note.

"We have two games left so if we can win both of those we can salvage some pride and give ourselves something to work with back in England this summer," he added.

It remains to be seen whather Strauss will be given another chance to lead the side in the two remaining games.

"It would have been a fantastic honour if it had gone ahead, the opportunity to captain your country is one that would make anyone proud, but apart from a couple of chats to the umpires I didn't actually do much," he said.