Roy’s century paves way for record chase by England

CENTURIES from Jason Roy and Joe Root powered England to their record one-day run chase, seeing off the West Indies by six wickets in Barbados after weathering a barrage of sixes by Chris Gayle. The tourists were up against it in the first ODI after Gayle ended his six-month exile from Windies colours in towering fashion, hitting 12 maximums in a knock of 135 and guiding his team to 360 for eight. England’s previous best pursuit was the 350 they scored against New Zealand in 2015 but Roy was fearless at the top of the order, hitting 123 in 85 balls, while Root all but finished the job with a measured 102. He fell with the scores tied but Jos Buttler clipped his first ball for four, sealing a historic win with eight deliveries remaining. The barnstormer in Bridgetown would have followed a different path had Roy managed to hold a tough catch while 39-year-old Gayle had just nine to his name, while England’s centurions were spared on seven occasions as the hosts came unstuck in the field. Roy offered four chances of varying difficulty between 75 and 119 and Ashley Nurse somehow managed to miss a trio of catches from Root on 46, 62 and 68. England captain Eoin Morgan said: ‘We’re delighted. I’d like to think we’re improving constantly as we go along, which is a good place to be in for the World Cup. ‘West Indies looked like posting up to 400, and the way in which we approached the last ten overs hauled them back. ‘The way we went about the chase — it felt like a 330 chase rather than a 360. You can’t look past the opening partnership. For Jason Roy to play such a commanding role at the top of the order set us up beautifully.’