| Second Test, Kensington Oval, Barbados (day one): |
| England 244-3: Root 119*, Lawrence 91 |
| West Indies Yet to bat |
| Scorecard |
England took control of the second Test on the first day with a century from Joe Root.
After being dropped on 34 and being given out behind on 23, Root was dropped again on 34 but still went on to score his 25th Test ton and second in as many days.
The loss of Dan Lawrence at the end of the day checked England's ascendancy.
Lawrence had looked on course for his maiden Test ton after combining with Root for a brilliant, aggressive stand of 163, but he was out in the final over.
Alex Lees made 30 from 138 balls, after opener Zak Crawley was caught behind for a duck in the fourth over.
The West Indies were wasteful on another flat pitch.
The tourists gave debuts to Saqib and Matt, the latter a late replacement for Craig who was ruled out with illness.
England was on the verge of a perfect day until Lawrence was dismissed.
Their captain had scored another century and Lawrence, one of the young batters given a chance in this series, had played his best knock to date.
With three figures on his mind and having cracked the two previous deliveries for four, the 24-year-old went hard at the ball and offered a catch. It would have been the last ball of the day.
The West Indies hit back as Holder celebrated wildly.
Lawrence had to leave the field as thousands of England fans applauded him.
The nature of the pitch means a score close to 400 is likely to be par.
The West Indies will try to keep England below that, having limited the scoring in the first part of the day.
He has fought almost single-handedly to keep his side's batting line-up afloat since the start of 2021, and his latest ton is his eighth in 19 Tests.
He looked unbeatable from the start, hitting a pull shot for four from his ninth ball and driving through the covers after that.
His second-innings109 in the Antigua draw was chanceless. He offered two chances, but he was spared because of the errors.
He appeared to edge onto his pad and into the gloves of Joshua da Silva, but the umpire was unmoved by the West Indies appeal.
The decision not to challenge the decision was influenced by the fact that the hosts wasted an optimistic review moments earlier.
After lunch, he tickled Kemar Roach down the leg-side. Da Silva tried to hold on to the ball, but could not.
Root didn't look back from there. He scored in his trademark areas off his pads and through the covers.
He has played another captain'sinning as his side make their quiet steps towards recovery following their loss to Australia.
England fans witnessed what could become part of their new era in the batting of Lees and Lawrence if Root's runs have become commonplace.
Lees made four and six on his debut in Antigua, but he lost both times to Roach.
The left-handed Durham pitcher was stubborn in his knock and it served him well to see off the new ball.
Lees fell off the back foot after scoring 80 runs in the first 45 overs. In the next 44.5 overs, Root and Lawrence added 164, at least in part, due to the platform provided.
Lawrence had a wristy, flicking six off Permaul.
The rush of blood was his undoing as he slowed to fifty from 62 balls.
A very good day for England assistant coach Marcus Trescothick. We are very pleased with where we are, we won the toss and took full advantage. We are in a good position. We should pile on more runs tomorrow.
The partnership between them was really nice. It was great to watch. Dan gave it a bit of flair and Joe was his disciplined self. He deserved a lot.
The partnership between Joe Root and Dan Lawrence is the best England have seen this winter.
Root will grab the headlines, but Lawrence was just as eye-catching until his dismissal. Lawrence played well, he deserved a hundred.
All Rights Reserved © 2024
