SO RUTHLESS
It’s Saturday night fever as England rout West Indies in crushing 19-wicket display
STUART BROAD lent a famous hand as England took an incredible 19 wickets on super Saturday of this inaugural floodlit Test to inflict a crushing innings-and-209-run defeat on hapless West Indies within three days.
Only Jermaine Blackwood (79no) provided any resistance in a first-innings 168 all out, and not even he could hold up the England juggernaut on its second run as Broad surpassed Sir Ian Botham and took second place behind his teammate James Anderson in the national all-time list of Test wicket-takers.
Soon afterwards, the tourists had folded for 137 to go 1-0 down, with two more to play in this series.
The first innings was an unedifying procession after West Indies resumed on 44 for one. Just 31 overs later, they had to start trying again a massive 346 runs adrift — and after struggling to 102 for four then went into a decline at the hands of Broad (three for 34), who took two in two and then bowled Shane Dowrich.
It was Anderson who blew away the Windies’ top order at the first try.
They lost both overnight batsmen for the addition of three runs in 11 deliveries, with Anderson (three for 34) to the fore in a spell of 4-3-6-2.
First, he got one to bounce on Kyle Hope for a simple catch at gully; then the left-hander tried to scamper a single to mid-on only to be run out when Anderson swooped to deliver a swift direct hit.
Roston Chase and Shai Hope were brought together without a run between them, and the former was unable to get off the mark before inside-edging a good one from Anderson on to his leg-bail on the back-foot defence.
It took seven overs before West Indies had the day’s first boundary, Blackwood’s convincing force past cover off Anderson bringing up the team 50, and almost instantly at the other end Hope got off the mark with a four too off the 16th ball.
Toby Roland-Jones replaced Anderson and Blackwood drove his first ball for four past mid-on as 21 runs came in three overs.
The counter-attack continued in a spirited fifth-wicket stand of 42 until Hope inside-edged an attempted drive on to his stumps — the first of two quick successes for RolandJones, who then had Dowrich lbw.
Ben Stokes decided to go short at Blackwood but could not stop the middle-order batsman completing an entertaining 49-ball 50.
Captain Jason Holder tried to join in, but his attempts to get after Mooen Ali resulted in just a thin edge behind — detected only by DRS after Marais Erasmus had initially ruled not out.
Broad returned for one over before lunch and needed only five deliveries before bowling Kemar Roach through the gate, but the final act of note in a hectic session was Blackwood’s — up the pitch to Moeen to smash the first six of the match.
There was time too, in only six overs after lunch, for him to launch Broad for an outrageous maximum over long-on — but West Indies’ first innings was up when Miguel Cummins was last out thanks to Tom Westley’s direct hit.
Predictably, it did not take long for the wickets to start falling again.
Powell did not convince before edging Anderson to slip, and then Roland-Jones had the first Hope lbw.
Hope number two was extinguished by Stokes and a routine edge to Root at second slip — and just when it seemed Kraigg Brathwaite and Chase might close out the middle session, Moeen overturned an initial lbw ruling to have the opener on DRS deep in his crease for 40.
Blackwood easily stumped as he tried to disrupt Moeen — and after that, Broad, had Chase lbw and Holder caught at slip to join Botham. Broad’s delivery homed in on the top of Dowrich’s off-stump — leaving the remaining two wickets to Anderson and finally Roland-Jones.