Gayle blows England to bits
CHRIS SUCH A SMASHER
ENGLAND took two steps backwards in a grim end-of-series performance that allowed master blaster Chris Gayle to give them another spanking.
The Universe Boss clubbed, flicked and simply battered England into submission in a horrible mismatch as he collected the fastest-ever fifty by a West
Indian from just 19 balls.
In his final ODI in the Caribbean, Gayle ended up with 77 as he helped overhaul the measly target of 114 with a record 37.5 overs to spare as the home side triumphed by seven wickets to level the series 2-2.
When he was finally bowled by Mark Wood following 27 balls of sheer brutality, the Jamaican ace turned to salute the crowd for the final time in this format and boy did they appreciate the entertainment from him.
After all the England batsmen failed to clear the ropes even once in their lowest-ever total of 113 all out against the West Indies in 101 contests, Gayle extended his tally by another nine sixes to score a record 39 for the series.
Wood might have got the wicket but he was hit for 26 runs from the previous five balls to show that while pace can be useful, up against the wrong man it can simply disappear.
Birthday boy Chris Woakes probably thought that he would have some fond memories from his 30th, but instead he
could wake up in a cold sweat following his duck and Gayle’s assault. Woakes thought he had done his job and had Gayle caught in the deep for 31 when he top-edged a hook into Adil Rashid’s hands. But instead the umpires, technology and physics conspired against him and adjudged it to be a no-ball because he had already bowled two bouncers in the over and a third is not allowed.
The next ball, a free hit, was slapped straight back over Woakes’ head and on to the roof of the stand behind him to make sure that along with his birthday cake he could also look forward to a stiff neck. As good as Gayle’s innings was it wasn’t the main reason why the Windies were able to draw the series – that accolade belongs to their bowlers who again exposed England’s fragility against pace on a pitch with something in it.
Jason Holder made the right call at the toss to stick England in and with a bit of extra pace and bounce, the bowlers led by Oshane Thomas made life extremely uncomfortable for Joe Root (above) and Co. Thomas finished with 5-21 as batsman after batsman came unstuck against the sort of short-pitched hostile which the West Indies made famous in the 1980s. Here, Thomas, Holder, Carlos Brathwaite and Sheldon Cottrell all shared the wickets as England’s batsmen were suckered into shots with little control as the extra bounce did for them.
This was a tired-looking blowout of a performance from England, the sort of which they have always been capable of. The fear is that a game like this comes along in this year’s World Cup semi-final or final, which is why this mauling will be such a concern to skipper Eoin Morgan.