Joe Root bemoaned a raft of soft dismissals amid England’s second Bridgetown collapse, but insisted one horror week against West Indies does not make them a bad side. The captain was one of eight victims to Roston Chase – a batting all-rounder who barely turns the ball and previously took his Test wickets at 47 apiece – and now has five days to pick the troops off the floor before Thursday’s second instalment in Antigua.
Of the batting, which was rolled for 77 in the first innings before Saturday’s 246 all out, Root said: “There was a few very soft dismissals in there. In the first innings there was a little bit of misfortune and West Indies bowled extremely well but there wasn’t a huge amount on offer for West Indies today. It was disappointing to see some of the dismissals.
“It is difficult to take but just because we’ve had three bad days of cricket – and one really bad hour which has swung the Test dramatically – it doesn’t mean we can’t win here. We are desperate to put it right in Antigua. At no point have we underestimated West Indies.”
While crepe-paper batting was the cause of England’s heaviest defeat in the Caribbean by way of runs, the make-up of their three-seamer, two-spinner bowling attack on a seemingly misread pitch has been the source of much debate over three sorry days.
Jimmy Anderson and Ben Stokes were forced to carry the attack throughout, with Sam Curran disappointing in his first defeat for England and both Adil Rashid and Moeen Ali off colour. The latter’s pair with the bat will also be a huge concern.
Root said: “It was a very difficult decision to make and easy to pick apart by how we have played. The guys that did go out there didn’t perform. We made bold calls in Sri Lanka and we reaped the rewards out there. It’s very easy to overlook that and start making rash decisions. We just have to take it on the chin in terms of how we play but also the pitch, trying to read it a bit better.”
On Stokes, who must surely rein in his aggressive training habits this week following a 50-over workload, Root added: “He works so hard on fitness so his body can handle weeks like this. He’ll be stiff and sore but desperate to get out there again. I thought him and Jimmy were exceptional. It’s very important to make sure they’re fresh for Antigua.”
Jason Holder was named player of the match for his bullying 202 not out from No 8. But, in keeping with his understated demeanor, the West Indies captain was keen to share the credit around, not least with his fellow Bajan, Chase, sitting alongside him in the press conference.
Asked how this shock result will affect the two sides, Holder said: “It should boost us. I don’t want to talk about England, they have their stuff to worry about. One win doesn’t make us world beaters. We have got to do the small things well and we’ll head towards being a good side.”
