Before
the start of the tour, England may be forgiven for expecting to win the Test
series and the ODIs with their hosts liable to nick the ever-unpredictable T20.
So far it’s not turning out that way. Joe Root’s men were dealt a heavy blow to
their collective egos by crushing defeats at Bridgetown at North Sound before
Wood and Root inspired a consolation victory at St Lucia.
Then,
in the past fortnight, the ODIs have thrown up a right topsy-turvy quartet of
games. The first-innings totals have been 360 (WI), 289(WI), 418 (Eng) and 113
(Eng) with two successful chases and two failures. All very ‘even-Stevens’ and
the Grenada washout ensured a respectable 2-2 draw even if it deprive the West Indies
a chance to gain their first series win since 2014.
The
first and fourth were entertaining run-fests which suited this world-leading
England squad down to the ground. On Barbados, Jason Roy and Root hunted down a
grand Gayle-inspired target with style, then at St George’s it was a
barnstorming 150 in 77 balls from Jos Buttler, supported by his captain Eoin
Morgan, which took the visitors past 400, no longer a rare occurrence.
Then
it all came undone in the final fixture, as England collapsed against the short
ball, notably bowled by young Oshane Thomas. Player after player perished to
mistimed hooks, pulls and slashes, allowing the Windies to cruise past the
finishing line like Usain Bolt in a field of primary schoolchildren on Sports
Day. Instead of Bolt it was his fellow Jamaican Chris Gayle who reminded us
what cricket will be missing when he retires after the World Cup. 77 in 27
balls was sensational even by Gayle’s high standards. Add that to his previous
scores of 135, 50 and 162 and you get an amazing series for the veteran opener.
He resembles a maroon-clad statue these days but when he can slog 39 sixes in
four innings, who cares?
As
for that World Cup, I don’t think this weekend’s humiliation will have much of
a bearing. England’s match pitches will be prepared nice and low to enable Roy,
Hales, Stokes, Buttler and Bairstow to do their thing, and the hosts will
surely progress to the semis at the very least. This series has also
demonstrated that the West Indies have their best chance of success for many
years. Gayle looks hungry to bow out with a bang and with Hope and Hetmyer
showing promise with the bat and a useful pace attack, the West Indies look
more than capable of mixing it with the likes of India, Australia, Pakistan
and, of course, England.
