Jonny Bairstow’s high-class unbeaten 100, his maiden ODI century, guided England to an emphatic victory over West Indies at Old Trafford
That’s a mighty victory for England, who win with seven wickets and 67 deliveries to spare. The defeat by Pakistan in the Champions Trophy semi-finals was such a shock but it doesn’t seem to have done any medium-term damage. Jonny Bairstow gets a lovely reception from his team-mates as he walks off; there seems to be a huge amount of goodwill towards him.
So, England lead 1-0 with four to play and the West Indies will need to play in the qualifying tournament for the 2019 World Cup. The next match is on Thursday at Trent Bridge. See you then!
30.5 overs: England 210-3 (Bairstow 100, Stokes 23) Ben Stokes finishing the match in style, lifting Nurse for six to end on 23 not out from 10 balls.
Bairstow crunches Nurse through extra cover for three to reach his maiden hundred! It’s been a high-class innings, and he celebrates with a vigorous punch of the air. All the England team are on their feet applauding, including Jason Roy. Jonny be very, very good these days, and he has a great chance to establish himself at the top of the order.
30th over: England 199-3 (Bairstow 97, Stokes 15) Bairstow slices Williams through backward point for four before taking a slow single - there haven’t been many of those in his innings - to move to 96. Another single off the penultimate delivery of the over leaves him three away. Stokes then crashes the last ball down the ground for six!
29th over: England 186-3 (Bairstow 91, Stokes 8) Bairstow works Nurse for a single to move into the nineties. Another single takes him to within nine runs of a maiden ODI century, six years since that memorable cameo on debut against India.
28th over: England 183-3 (Bairstow 89, Stokes 7) Ben Stokes edges his first ball wide of the solitary slip for a single and then, off the final delivery, chips a slower, low full toss just over the head of Williams for four. England need 22 to win.
Eoin Morgan’s poor form continues. He pushed indecisively at a back-of-length delivery from Williams, unsure whether to defend or glide, and ended up thin-edging through to the keeper Shai Hope.
27th over: England 174-2 (Bairstow 88, Morgan 10) Nurse returns to the attack and beats Bairstow with a quicker one. He has been the pick of the West Indies bowlers by a fair way.
26th over: England 172-2 (Bairstow 86, Morgan 8) Bairstow cuffs Williams through extra cover for three, which makes this his highest ODI score. He could barely have wished for a more successful or comfortable start to his extended residence at the top of the order.
I forgot to plug this earlier, by the way - a fresh bit of spicy Beef.
Related: Ian Botham calls for transfer system after Durham lose Paul Coughlin
25th over: England 165-2 (Bairstow 82, Morgan 6) “Root’s accumulation reminds me of the story of a cricketer who sold his soul to the devil so as to have a steady professional career as a batsman,” says John Starbuck. “Not wanting to draw undue attention, he is guaranteed a 50 but no more each time, so he usually gets out in the mid-40s. After a long county career, he is selected for England, but ends up as one of the last two against Australia needing a very few runs. Everything he tries to do to get no 11 to score fails, so after being on 50 for a long time, he finally scores the winning run. He never scores a run again in any form of the game and all because Lucifer doesn’t understand the concept of the leg-bye.”
That sounds like the concept for a choose-your-own-adventure book by Vic Marks.
24th over: England 159-2 (Bairstow 82, Morgan 1) The new batsman is Eoin Morgan. He’s scored 12 runs in his last seven innings, all in T20 cricket.
In an unlikely development, we have a wicket. Root, cramped for room by a shortish delivery by the new bowler Williams, pings it down onto the stumps.
23rd over: England 152-1 (Bairstow 79, Root 52) Root pulls Taylor for two to reach a 49-ball half-century full of unobtrusive class. He is now also the leading runscorer since the last World Cup. England have 19 overs to score 53 runs; they are going to thrash West Indies.
22nd over: England 146-1 (Bairstow 79, Root 46) Too short from Bishoo, and Root cracks a pull through wide mid-on for four. This is a poor over from Bishoo, with Bairstow slapping consecutive short balls to the boundary. Fifteen from the over!
In an unrelated development, has anyone read the Chris Lewis book? Any good?
21st over: England 131-1 (Bairstow 71, Root 39) A miserable short ball from the returning Taylor is slapped over cover for four by Bairstow. That brings up a 98-ball hundred partnership, the video of which should be used as a coaching aid. The running in particular has been close to perfect.
20th over: England 126-1 (Bairstow 67, Root 38) Bairstow rocks back to pull Bishoo down the ground for four and steers thje next ball to the third-man boundary for good measure. His highest ODI score to date is that feelgood, series-winning 83 not out against New Zealand in 2015. He’ll kick himself, perhaps literally, if he doesn’t get a maiden ODI ton tonight.
19th over: England 114-1 (Bairstow 57, Root 36) Joe Root’s career average (in all positions, not just No3) is creeping towards 50. Only Jonathan Trott has a better record for England. It’ll never happen, and I don’t blame him one bit for keeping his thoughts to himself, but I would love to hear an honest, detailed explanation from Root about why he’s so reluctant to bat at No3 in the Test team. It’s a fascinating subject.
18th over: England 108-1 (Bairstow 56, Root 31) I suspect that Bairstow and Root’s intelligence and ability have made batting look much easier against the spinners than is actually the case, because the ball is turning a fair bit now. The moment I type that, Bairstow misses a monstrous heave at a big legspinner from Bishoo and survives a stumping referral.
17th over: England 106-1 (Bairstow 55, Root 30) On Sky, Mike Atherton is talking about how nice it is for Joe Root to take a break from the captaincy when he’s in the ODI side.
Ian Ward: “When you’re captain of England, how much of your energy goes into looking after other people and all the other things that go with the job?”
16th over: England 99-1 (Bairstow 51, Root 29) Bairstow works Bishoo to the third-man boundary to reach an accomplished, mature half-century from 52 balls. Well played indeed.
“I don’t think there is enough cricket,” sniffs Ian Copestake. “An aggressive all-year-round strategy should be pursued so we are not in thrall to the Premiership. Put a roof on Lord’s an all.”
15th over: England 94-1 (Bairstow 47, Root 28) Nurse is starting to get some fairly sharp turn, though England are so far ahead of the game that it’s unlikely to make much difference.
14th over: England 92-1 (Bairstow 46, Root 27) Bishoo continues. Root reaches a long way outside off to belt a sweep between midwicket and mid-on for four. That was a great shot. This looks so easy for England.
“Interesting that you mention Root being forever 21,” says Adam Roberts. “I was considering the other day how the older I get, the less perspective I have on the length of a sportsman’s career. So until recently I still thought of Rooney as the SFN (Spud Faced Nipper) and Justin Rose had just turned pro. And what a shock to see footage from 2012 of new Test players Bairstow and Roach. It’s the sporting equivalent of policemen looking younger.”
13th over: England 84-1 (Bairstow 43, Root 22) An excellent over from Nurse, who troubles Bairstow with a biggish offspinner and then beats him on the outside with a quicker one.
“Occasionball boundary?” says John Starbuck, highlighting the typo in the 11th over. “That’s quite good and worth using again, but it does indicate you are hosting the spirit of James Joyce.”
12th over: England 82-1 (Bairstow 42, Root 21) Devendra Bishoo comes into the attack, or rather the defence. There’s no sense that a wicket is imminent, never mind the nine they need to win this match. The fifty partnership comes up from 44 deliveries. Most of those runs have been scampered rather than biffed; it’s been a performance of low-key excellence.
“It will be interesting to see how the next generation of spinners get on,” says John Starbuck. “It’s long been a truism that a wrist spinner will get you more wickets, but also that they’ll cost more runs. If you aim to get control over batsmen rather than attack them, the choice is simple and down to (the captain’s) team temperament.”
11th over: England 76-1 (Bairstow 37, Root 20) England are killing West Indies softly, with single after single after single and just the occasionball boundary - like that from Root, reverse swept friskily off the bowling of Nurse.
10th over: England 69-1 (Bairstow 36, Root 14) Six singles from Williams’ second over. This has been a clinic in running between the wickets from Bairstow and Root. Nothing wrong with their dot-ball ratios! We should call them the milkmen.
9th over: England 63-1 (Bairstow 33, Root 11) The offspinner Ashley Nurse’s second ball is lashed through the covers for four by Bairstow, who is batting really well. Roy provided a short, sharp shock at the top of the order; Bairstow has the look of somebody who wants to bat 40 overs and make 140.
8th over: England 56-1 (Bairstow 26, Root 10) Kesrick Williams replaces Jason Holder. He was impressive in the T20 on Saturday, though he’s currently nursing an ODI bowling average of 138. Make that 147 after an expensive first over that includes a tickle to the fine-leg boundary from Bairstow.
7th over: England 47-1 (Bairstow 19, Root 9) Jonny Bairstow is 28 next week. When did that happen? He does look ready to go to the next level, certainly as a Test batsman and maybe in ODIs too. Meanwhile Joe Root, who will forever be 21 years old, pulls Taylor just over the head of short fine leg for four. England are cruising and need 158 from 35 overs.
6th over: England 38-1 (Bairstow 15, Root 4) Root survives a dodgy drop-and-run, with the bowler Holder’s throw missing the stumps at the non-striker’s end. Root and Bairstow are generally brilliant between the wickets, so it’s no surprise that there’s a single from every delivery in that over.
“Would Rashid have been picked if it had been a hotter summer like, say, 1976?” asks Matthew Doherty.
5th over: England 32-1 (Bairstow 12, Root 1) The new batsman is Joe Root. He may not want to bat No3 in Tests but in ODIs the role fits him like a bespoke glove. In the history of the game, only the astonishing Virat Kohli has a higher average among those who have played at least 20 innings at No3. There are some serious names on this list.
Hales goes, slapping a short ball from Taylor to backward point. He looked in spectacular touch, racing to 19 from 14 balls, and will be pretty disappointed to get out like that.
4th over: England 27-0 (Bairstow 12, Hales 15) Bairstow drags Holder over wide mid-on for four, one hand coming off the bat in the process. England have picked up where they left off before that numbing semi-final defeat to Pakistan in the Champions Trophy. The future is less secure, though. Before the Pakistan game they had two shots at glory, the Champions Trophy and the 2019 World Cup. Not anymore. Next time, there’ll be no next time.
3rd over: England 21-0 (Bairstow 7, Hales 14) A short ball from Taylor is monstered over midwicket for a one-bounce four by Hales. A big series here will probably get him on the Ashes tour - whether it should is another matter - and he looks in glorious touch.
“Re Rashid at Lord’s, I think England were worried about Moeen going round the park (as he does from time to time) and then Rashid doing the same thing in the very first innings of the series (a prolonged Slatering),” says Gary Naylor. “637-2 is scarring that lasts. Leaving Rashid out may have been unfair, but it wasn’t irrational.”
2nd over: England 15-0 (Bairstow 7, Hales 8) There will be plenty of scrutiny on Jonny Bairstow, England’s newish ODI opener. He certainly has the game to succeed, though he isn’t yet as naturally explosive as Roy. You’d expect him to get a decent run now. He gets his first boundary today with a businesslike slap through the covers off Jason Holder.
1st over: England 9-0 (Bairstow 1, Hales 8) Alex Hales makes a pretty slow start, using up one dot ball before clouting Jerome Taylor over the leg side for four. The next ball is clipped through midwicket for four more, aided by a comedy misfield from Mohammed. He picked the ball up on the run just inside the boundary, tried to throw it behind him - and then watched it go straight over the rope.
The players are back out on the field. England need 205 from 42 overs. Let us flay.
“On the Adil Rashid subject,” begins James Thompson. “Whenever you watch Sky and they discuss him, they say that Joe Root will have been around him and there must be something that he didn’t like which is why he hasn’t been picked this summer. Surely Root doesn’t have that kind of influence on the selectors?”
I think he does, particularly for what was his first match as captain. Gary Ballance was certainly a Root pick. There are obvious reservations about Rashid as a Test player. I just think he did more than enough in the winter to get another chance. Morgan has captained him beautifully in white-ball cricket; he’s never had the same faith in the Test team.
“That’s one weird picture,” says Andrew Benton. Look, we all have to do a byline picture, it’s just the way newspaper wor- oh, I see. “Is Stokes wearing a big skin-coloured gauntlet that extends halfway up his forearm? And what’s he doing to Woakes’ belly?”
So, England need 205 to win in 42 overs. File under should. See you in a wee while for their run-chase.
42nd over: West Indies 204-9 (Holder 41, Williams 0) Holder chips the last ball of the innings lazily down the ground for two to complete a fine last over for the West Indies - 15 from it. Holder top scores with a useful 41 not out. Stokes bowled him two beamers earlier in the over, both of which slipped out of the hand. Only the pitiful will make anything of it. Stokes actually had one of his better ODIs with the ball before that last over, and finishes with three for 43.
After two accidental beamers in a chaotic last over from Stokes, Jerome Taylor hits a slower ball straight up in the air to give Jos Buttler a simple catch. There’s one ball remaining in the innings.
41st over: West Indies 189-8 (Holder 29, Taylor 1) Holder cuffed Willey down the ground before the dismissal of Bishoo, only the third boundary in the last ten overs. Willey ends with figures of 6-0-39-1.
Bishoo tries to ramp Willey, misses, and loses both his wicket and a soupçon of dignity. Eight balls remain in the innings.
40th over: West Indies 181-7 (Holder 23, Bishoo 4) An excellent over of death bowling from Stokes includes wide yorkers, slower balls ... everything we wish he’d bowled to Carlos Brathwaite, basically. Three runs from the over.
“To be fair, Rob…” says Gary Naylor, pasting the text commentary of Dawson’s dismissal of Hashim Amla.
39th over: West Indies 178-7 (Holder 22, Bishoo 3) Liam Plunkett returns to the attack, and a flurry of ones and twos take West Indies past their score of 176 for nine in the T20 game on Saturday.
38th over: West Indies 169-7 (Holder 16, Bishoo 1) Holder snicks Stokes for four. Good stuff from Nasser Hussain on Sky; he suggests West Indies have had a block-or-thwack approach to this innings and then backs it up with a statgasm: their dot-ball percentage today is 60, which is huge.
37th over: West Indies 161-7 (Holder 10, Bishoo 0) Rashid ends his spell with fine figures of 9-0-31-2. Why oh why oh flipping effing why didn’t England pick him ahead of Liam Dawson for that Lord’s Test against South Africa?
Another one for the excellent Rashid. Nurse goes inside out over extra cover but doesn’t get enough on it and Root takes a good running catch on the boundary.
36th over: West Indies 159-6 (Holder 8, Nurse 1) Ben Stokes returns to the attack. His first spell was superb and his second starts prrrrretty well with just a single from the over. West Indies are going nowhere. Not even sure they’re doing it fast. They have six overs to do something about it.
35th over: West Indies 158-6 (Holder 7, Nurse 1) Adil Rashid has taken 68 wickets since the 2015 World Cup, more than anyone else in the world. How great, by the way, that three of the top four on that list are legspinners. There is no prospect of a 69th wicket for Rashid in that over, with West Indies taking no risks whatsoever.
34th over: West Indies 155-6 (Holder 5, Nurse 0) Holder edges Woakes wide of slip for four.
“Over the next two years you have to accept that a turnover rate of about half would be, if not expected, at least a figure to plan for,” says John Starbuck. “Injuries and form obviously play a part but the trick lies, as usual, in spotting the new talent and how they perform under pressure. The actual placings in batting order or bowling unit can be disregarded for now. If I were a betting man (which I’m not) I’d look at how the younger county players at Test grounds are panning out. Unfair, but Test status does seem to be a factor.”
West Indies are going quietly. Powell tries to work Woakes to leg and inadvertently loops the ball towards mid-on, where Willey takes a comfortable running catch.
33rd over: West Indies 150-5 (Powell 23, Holder 0) Terrific stuff from Rashid. We’ll probably die wondering about his Test career; there is some consolation in the fact that he is bowling better than ever in white-ball cricket.
England have an even tighter grip on the game now. Mohammed slog sweeps Rashid towards deep midwicket, where Hales takes a simple catch. Actually it almost slipped out of his Hales’ hands, which would have been mildly embarrassing. But it didn’t, so what’s your point? Another wicket for Rashid, who has become one of England’s most important players in this format.
32nd over: West Indies 149-4 (Mohammed 18, Powell 22) I wonder how many of this England XI will be in the World Cup squad in two years’ time. David Willey is probably under the most threat, though an in-form Willey has the lovely ability to take early wickets. Liam Plunkett will be 34, though I’m sure you’ll concur that he’s a splendid specimen of masculinity.
While I’m busy worrying about 2019, Woakes hurries through an over that costs just two. England have a grip on this game at the moment.
31st over: West Indies 147-4 (Mohammed 17, Powell 22) Adil Rashid replaces Liam Plunkett, and Jason Mohammed says hello with a vigorous slap over midwicket for six. They need a few more such blows after those ponderous innings by Shai Hope and particularly Marlon Samuels.
30th over: West Indies 138-4 (Mohammed 9, Powell 21). There is a bowling change, but it’s broadly like for like, Woakes for Stokes. It yields a single to Mohammed before Powell edges for four through the vacant slip region. Jimmy Anderson, in his commentary box debut, points out that Powell’s strike rate is way better against seamers than spinners, but he’s not faced any yet. A wide from a bouncer and a sharper, more accurate short ball round off the over.
Right, that’s my stint done. Rob Smyth will now take you by the hand and guide you gently through the rest of the action. Stay with him.
29th over: West Indies 132-4 (Mohammed 8, Powell 17). Mohammed drives Plunkett square on the offside for one before Powell unfurls an exquisite straight drive for SIX, all timing and technique. The best of the day. Three quick singles follow. Time for the spinners again?
28th over: West Indies 123-4 (Mohammed 6, Powell 10). Drop! Mohammed pulls Stokes round the corner – it’s high and reachable for Chris Woakes but he’s slow to make his ground and spills it after getting his fingertips to it low down. And then, finally, a boundary, Powell’s high on-drive having enough momentum to trickle to the ropes when it lands. Another over-cooked bouncer is punished with a wide signal before a hastily scurried two rounds off a much better over for the tourists.
27th over: West Indies 113-4 (Mohammed 4, Powell 3). Mohammed straight drives Plunkett for one, but the boundaries continue to be elusive. Plunkett then concedes a wide with a bouncer so high it’s at least twice Powell’s height as it passes over him. He duly gets off the mark with another of those lofty on-drives that gets stuck in the outfield, bringing two. Another couple of singles follow.
England’s Test wicketkeeper, earlier:
WICKET! Gingers combine as @benstokes28 delivers and @jbairstow21 takes a fantastic catch!
WI 103/3 #ENGvWIhttps://t.co/30js6zz0Fupic.twitter.com/vJhc2aAi23
26th over: West Indies 107-4 (Mohammed 2, Powell 0). Stokes’s offside strategy misfires with a fairly blatant wide at Samuels, and it’s followed by what initially looks to be one down the legside – but Stokes appeals for a catch behind. Morgan opts for a review, and it pays off. Not a wide, but a wicket, ultra-edge confirms. Samuels is a goner. England are on top now.
Wide or wicket? Stokes slants one down legside, which Samuels looks to have glanced to the keeper. Umpire Robinson initially calls wide, but England review, and Stokes is vindicated - there was contact, and he’s snared Samuels!
25th over: West Indies 106-3 (Samuels 17, Mohammed 2). Plunkett sends down four straight dot balls at Mohammed, then takes a bit of a tumble on the edge of the wicket - not sure you can pin that on the state of the surface – before Mohammed nudges through the covers for one. Samuels rounds off the over with an upper cut to third man, but he still can’t find the boundary. He has 17 from 44 balls.
24th over: West Indies 104-3 (Samuels 16, Mohammed 1). Hope’s promising innings comes to an end when he connects cleanly to pull a back of a length Stokes ball but sends it into Jonny Bairstow’s hands. He took it well, leaping and taking expertly. The pressure pays off. Mohammed is off the mark with a push on the offside.
Stokes gets the wicket he deserves, Hope pulling cleanly to deep square leg where Jonny Bairstow takes a fine catch.
23rd over: West Indies 103-2 (S Hope 35, Samuels 16). Hope cuts Plunkett square for a single to bring up a low-key but nonetheless useful 50 partnership. Plunkett also opts, wisely, to bang it in at Samuels and beats him with two consecutive short sharp’uns. And the batsman can’t work away the fuller ones either, and looks a little frustrated.
22nd over: West Indies 102-2 (S Hope 34, Samuels 16). A Stokes outthinks Hope with a wide slower ball out of the back of the hand that Hope hacks at and misses, a foible he repeats next ball before adding a rather more elegant clipped single. Another slower ball bamboozles Samuels before Stokes digs one in at his bat handle. An excellent over. And that’s drinks.
21st over: West Indies 101-2 (S Hope 33, Samuels 16). A change of ends for Plunkett, who replaces Rashid at the Jimmy Anderson end. It’s a more controlled and accurate over than those he sent down at the other end, though a crack past mid-on brings Samuels a single to take West Indies into three figures. Another leg-bye follows. Though England have reined West Indies back in after their earlier excesses, this stand’s beginning to look more and more useful. At the halfway stage in the innings, this one’s still delicately poised.
20th over: West Indies 98-2 (S Hope 32, Samuels 15). And here it is: Stokes is into the attack, Hope cutting his first ball square for a single to put his old mucker Marlon on strike. Stokes greets him with a slightly shorter ball that is worked easily down to third man for one. Hope adds one more to enable the pouting and glaring to resume as Samuels steps out of the way to halt Strokes in his delivery stride. The response is a bouncer that Samuels evades easily enough and it’s followed by a nice full slower ball that the batsman misses completely.
19th over: West Indies 94-2 (S Hope 30, Samuels 14). Rashid continues, conceding three consecutive singles before two low full tosses yield dot balls thanks to smart fielding at mid-on. Dropped catch aside, England have looked pretty focused in the field so far today.
18th over: West Indies 91-2 (S Hope 28, Samuels 13). Samuels nudges Plunkett off his legs for one as the ‘middle-overs meander’ vibe continues. Well at least until Hope produces another confidently executed pull shot for four. What an accomplished cricketer this man now looks, in all forms. Plunkett’s bowling at pace but not quite got his lengths right yet.
Here’s that Root catch from earlier by the way:
WICKET! @root66 with a brilliant catch to remove Gayle off @chriswoakes!
WI 53/2 #ENGvWI
More clips: https://t.co/30js6zz0Fupic.twitter.com/LdtRtX1apr
17th over: West Indies 85-2 (S Hope 23, Samuels 13). Samuels drives Rashid through extra cover for two before the bowler appeals excitedly for a leg-before after a wrong’un strikes the advancing Samuels on the pad, but it’s almost certainly outside the line in the opinion of everyone else. Nonetheless, Rashid is bowling really well here. A wicket might be nice though.
16th over: West Indies 82-2 (S Hope 23, Samuels 10). Sooner or later one of these bowling changes will grant us a glimpse of Stokes v Samuels won’t it? Maybe but not yet. Plunkett’s the new bowler at the Statham End, and Hope cracks his first ball away nicely for a single. A bit of sloppiness in the field from Stokes brings another before Hope connects beautifully to send a perfectly timed pull-shot to the long-on boundary for four. West Indies’ most productive over in a while.
15th over: West Indies 74-2 (S Hope 17, Samuels 8). A glimpse of Bad Adil as he sends a full-toss at Samuels, but he can only pick up two with his push through the covers. The rest of the over’s pretty decent though, aided by sharp energetic work in the field as Hales cuts off a sweep slog that might have been four but ends up being one.
14th over: West Indies 70-2 (S Hope 15, Samuels 6). Samuels square-drives Willey uppishly for two but generally can’t clear the well-placed infield with his cover drives as Willey varies his pace nicely. Another single rounds off a frugal over.
13th over: West Indies 67-2 (S Hope 15, Samuels 3). Hope removes the shackles and launches Rashid over long-on for not so much a one-bounce four as a one-trickle four, such is the spongey turf. Rashid’s following his shots nicely though, generally tucking him up and bowling on a good length. I still wouldn’t rule him out for Tests in the future, but it seems those that make the decisions would.
12th over: West Indies 63-2 (S Hope 11, Samuels 3). Hope and Samuels not taking any risks at the moment, and aren’t really being given the opportunity to, Willey foxing Hope with a scrambled-seam inswinger that he plays outside, but a more expansive stroke does bring four, kind of by accident, skimming off the outside edge along the ground to the third-man boundary.
11th over: West Indies 57-2 (S Hope 6, Samuels 2). A spin for spin replacement, leg for off, as Rashid replaces Moeen. He keeps it tidy and accurate, conceding no room and only a single apiece to Hope and Samuels.
“Martin Matthews is soft,” bellows Bob O’Hara, slamming down his pint and summoning all-comers. “I hear Joe Root will still be playing cricket in December & January. Although not, I hope, with these idiots
10th over: West Indies 55-2 (S Hope 5, Samuels 1). Powerplay two sees Willey back from the Statham End and Samuels is off the mark with a flick to midwicket. Willey’s still finding some movement in the air, and makes Hope play and miss at one he doesn’t properly read. It’s another economical over, and West Indies need to reboot here.
“In response to George Davidson’s impassioned crie de coeur,” writes Brian Withington, “can I suggest in defence of the ECB that they might have reckoned on one of those (West) Indian Summers of yore to justify scheduling 5 ODIs in late September. I think Thomas Hardy called it “Martinmas” in Mayor of Casterbridge (O-level English Lit set text 1976 - now that was a summer and a half). Funny how some words stick in the memory, like a Proustian smell of madeleine ...” Proof, also, that every single conversation about West Indies cricket will always at one point invokes the summer of 1976. It’s cricket’s equivalent of Mornington Crescent, or something.
9th over: West Indies 53-2 (S Hope 4, Samuels 0). Woakes pitches a tad too full and wide to give Gayle a chance to swing again, but this aerial drive is another that plugs in the outfield and gives him just two. Morgan pushes his fielders to the edge of the circle, exploiting Gayle’s clear discomfort at running ones and twos. It works, as Gayle is “forced” to go over the top, and doesn’t quite nail another straight drive that Root takes brilliantly. So momentum is with England now at the end of the first powerplay.
England have their man. Unable to run freely, Gayle goes inevitably for the drive over the top but doesn’t quite get hold of it and Root, running back, takes an excellent catch on the run at long-off.
8th over: West Indies 51-1 (Gayle 35, S Hope 4). A Hope single off Moeen brings the 50 up before Gayle pretty much walks for another one. But the flow of runs has been stemmed for now, as Moeen tucks up Hope for the rest of a tidy over, that yields only two.
“Who’s complaining about cricket in September?” fifth-Yorkshiremans Martin Matthews from, er, north London. “At Highgate CC we play until the 8th of October (against Stage CC since you asked).”
7th over: West Indies 49-1 (Gayle 34, S Hope 3). Woakes cuts Hope in half with a beauty that thwacks the edge of the pad and dobs down to first slip. His subsequent single returns Gayle to the strike, whereupon his frankly contemptuous approach to running between the wickets is almost punished as he almost forgets to run for his dab down to backward point, but the throw at the stumps is nowhere near accurate enough. Bumble thinks Gayle’s been picked up on the stump mic complaining of a hamstring pull. He’s certainly not running easily. He might have to get ‘em in fours and sixes, which he mostly does anyway.
6th over: West Indies 46-1 (Gayle 33, S Hope 1). An early airing of spin, though no an altogether surprising one, as Moeen replaces Willey. This could go either way, though it begins with a couple of sleepy singles, before vindication arrives swiftly as Lewis hoiks one straight to Hales at square leg. The much-praised Shai Hope is the new man in, and begins cautiously, getting off the mark with a nudge round the corner for one to deprive Gayle of the strike.
The change of bowling works, Moeen is pulled fiercely to square leg by Lewis, and Hales takes a sharp catch.
5th over: West Indies 43-0 (Gayle 32, Lewis 10). Lewis gets his first four with a classical Proper Cricket shot, driving Woakes off the back foot through the gaps on the offside for four. He squirts another single down to third man to put Gayle on strike, and two slips pushed further out, and Woakes sends a lovely delivery past the left-hander’s outside-edge. A better over for England.
An email, less a quip than a serious Letter to the Editor, from George Davidson:
Sir,
The authorities who are supposed to protect cricket continue to do their best to damage it.
4th over: West Indies 38-0 (Gayle 32, Lewis 5). The onslaught continues. Willey fancies an lbw shout against Lewis after rapping him high on the pad, but no one else does: it’s clearly going over. Lewis lives dangerously again, miscuing a pivoted pull shot that falls just short of Hales at deep square leg. Willey’s making the ball do more than Woakes is but can’t legislate for Gayle’s unerring ability to pick up a length ball and effortlessly swing it straight down the ground for SIX, which he does off the fourth delivery of the over, which is prolonged by a wide before Willey finds a low outside-edge off Gayle that doesn’t carry to second slip. Gayle’s comeback shot is, you guessed, another easy SIX down the ground, the biggest of the lot, punishing Willey for over-pitching. Whatever you think of him, he’s a cricketing phenomenon.
3rd over: West Indies 24-0 (Gayle 20, Lewis 4). The onslaught starts? More chance-offering from West Indies as Lewis’s square slash off Woakes just eludes Morgan at backward point and brings two. He adds a single before Gayle gets his first boundary with a crunching aerial straight drive that takes one bounce. The next one doesn’t take any – it’s walloped over long-on and several rows back for SIX, and Gayle pulls the next ball across the line towards the same area for four more for good measure. England are attacking hard here, with three slips in, but these openers can give it back.
2nd over: West Indies 7-0 (Gayle 6, Lewis 1). David Willey opens up at the other end, and gets extravagant swing straight away, and Gayle lets it pass. A languid drive into the covers followed by an aerial clip to deep square leg then bring him two and one respectively, and Lewis gets underway by digging out an attempted yorker to mid-on for a single. Gayle’s first attempt to go large, a chip over mid-off, plugs in the much-fretted-over turf and doesn’t make the boundary. It’s two.
“Typical of Manchester to have under-soil rain,” regional-stereotypes Ian Copestake.
1st over: West Indies 1-0 (Gayle 1, Lewis 0). So Chris Woakes has the new ball as we enter the first nine-over powerplay. Chris Gayle’s first ODI shot in more than two years is a limp play and miss as Woakes skilfully pushes one past his outside edge. And his third shot is DROPPED, a sharp slash outside off stump to second slip, where Joe Root snatches at it and spills it. How many more times will England slip fielders do that this season? Gayle gets underway with a flick to square leg for a single and Woakes rounds off a fine first over with a steepling bouncer at the left-handed Lewis.
The players are on their way out. Old Trafford looks all lovely and sunny. As it has for the past couple of hours.
Before we start:
Our thoughts and prayers with our brothers and sisters in the path of Hurricane Maria. A message below from Prime Minister of Dominica. pic.twitter.com/hfTrKcXrmG
Both sides go with two spinners, to no great surprise:
England: Hales, Bairstow, Root, Morgan, Stokes, Buttler, Moeen, Woakes, Rashid, Plunkett, Willey
Jason Holder calls right and opts for first use, backing his top order and spinners.
Umpire Tim Robinson says “it’s still not great but dried a little bit”, and we have ourselves a game - 42 overs a side.
“Why don’t they move the boundary to exclude the wet areas for this match?” ponders Andrew Benton, thinking right outside that box. “As long as it stays there for both innings, I can’t see a problem.” Given that the damp areas include patches well within the circle, it would make for some crazily easy sixes and overthrows. Worth a go, I guess. Bums on seats and all that.
Bumble is out there prodding at some parts of the outfield on which players had been doing some practice, and they do look quite churned. “It’s a bit damp,” he concedes, urging the non-shooting of messengers. Part of the problem, he says, is that Old Trafford has staged two big concerts here this summer, in aid of the Manchester bomb victims, which no one should begrudge, but it’s added to the strain on the surface.
John Starbuck weighs in with his first email of the day: “I blame the Old Trafford management,” he thunders. “You can understand them wanting to sweat their assets, as that’s what people are told to do these days, but there’s a category error here: you can’t mix international cricket and rock concerts at the same venue because the quality of the playing surface is all-important. High traffic areas are all very well for a rugby game, because the players expect to be slipping and sliding around - it’s part of the appeal. Not so for the Greatest Game.”
“Cricket speaks with forked tongue,” hisses Mike Hill: “ECB campaigns to ‘get the game on’ and at the same time says player safety is paramount. End result: glorious sunny day, wicket and square dry, bit of a damp outfield and no play. people wonder why cricket is dying sport.”
Though I suspect a fixture such as this, scheduled as it is, is something of a preacher to the converted. Won’t be many young fans at this one. Still, a decent crowd is in to spend money in the bars...
For want of anything better to do, Gary Weightman emails in and waxes nostalgic: “Being somewhat long in the tooth the sight of umpires parading around the outfield poking at damp patches is marvellously old school, the days before supersoppers, the days of hessian mats and sawdust.”
On the other hand, Andrew Benton rails at the future: “Cricket needs industrial-sized vacuum cleaners to suck up the water - someone must have thought to invented one, surely?” It’s a really poor show from The Boffins, that - we don’t need any more iPhones. We need monster-rain-vacuumers. And jetpacks, obviously.
This is perfectly tedious. Not ready to start yet - perhaps some miraculous transformation will have blessed us in 45 minutes.
Still no definite decision. The areas of concern on the pitch appear to be square-ish of the wicket - around backward point - some patches on the boundary, and along the bowlers’ run-ups. Player safety is an understandable concern. This isn’t looking particularly hopeful, and nor does it reflect well on the schedule - who’d have thought it might be touch and go to get a game of cricket on in the autumn?
The umpires are on the outfield, stomping around on the suspect bits, then milling and chatting to the captains, and looking somewhat anxious and contemplative, it must be said. The pitch itself “looks absolutely fantastic”, with a decent amount of early carry and plenty in it for spinners later on, according to Jimmy Anderson and David Lloyd on Sky duties. If we’re deprived cricket on it, there’ll be some very unhappy punters.
“Can’t help feeling as I did at 7.30pm on Easter Sunday after a surfeit of choccy - I’ve had too much of a good thing,” sighs a phlegmatic Gary Naylor. “Ho hum.” Helpfully, courtesy of Gary, you can pass some time by reading his own county cricket talking points here:
Related: County cricket talking points: Essex win title as former champions fight relegation
Ian Ward on Sky reminds us that West Indies need to win this series 4-0 or 5-0 to guarantee qualification for the World Cup - going through the qualification tournament is their likely fate – which reminds me to be angry anew about the mean and stupid decision to cut the number of competing teams in the finals to 10, and in a tedious single-group format. The people who run cricket and football’s world cups need to swap places.
The between-innings break has been reduced to 15 minutes, and latest indications are that if the match can start by 1.30 they’ll play the whole 50 overs each; any more and we’ll start losing some.
Some succinct early thoughts from you the public:
The fact that this is being played in September is a disgrace.
It isn’t raining, but the outfield is deemed too damp and soft in important areas to start at the moment, and groundstaff “have concerns”, Saturday’s slip-sliding at Durham perhaps particularly prominent in their mind. They’ll look again at 1pm, though given that there’s no wind and it’s not exactly tropical, you have to wonder how much dryer it can get.
Some pre-match reading for you. The Spin is in – and if you don’t subscribe, for extra choice tidbits, you really should. Anyway, Andy Bull pays tribute to stalwart county wicketkeepers and international nearly men Chris Read and Jamie Foster in this week’s edition:
Related: The gloves are off: Chris Read bows out and is James Foster set to follow? | The Spin
Morning/afternoon everyone. Time was when the entire season would be done and dusted by this point in September. Tests, ODIs, all the county honours, the works. But here we are, at the start of an ODI series, the final international stanza of this quart-into-a-pint-pot of an English season. It’s too easy to scoff at this summer’s schedule of course, but what with England hosting showpiece 50-over tournaments in the men’s and women’s game, an eagerly anticipated marquee series against South Africa - which actually turned out to be a dampish squib - and a Test series against West Indies to crowbar in too, it’s hard to see when else this series, if it were to be held at all, could be slotted in.
As it happens, the unexpectedly watchable nature of the West Indies Test series has kept the pot boiling a little. That involved a very different touring squad, of course, but the return of big guns such as sexism’s Chris Gayle and banter’s Marlon Samuels for the limited-overs stuff adds spice to this final chapter of the international summer.
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