England vs West Indies 3rd Test: Story of the Match

(Joe Root with the winning Trophy
Photo Courtesy: Twitter)

In the final day of the series, the West Indies batting collapsed like a house of cards. With a 269-run win, England retained the Wisden trophy.

(Ollie Pope and Jos Buttler
Photo Courtesy: Twitter)

Day 1 of the Test belonged to England after the hosts recovered well from 122/4 before tea to finish the day at 258/4. Ollie Pope was the architect of England’s remarkable comeback. Pope scored a blazing 91* off 142 balls. Jos Buttler who played second fiddle to Pope scored an unbeaten 56. Both piled up a crucial 136-run partnership for the fifth wicket. Earlier in the day, West Indies won the toss and elected to field yet again. The decision seemed to be good for them when Kemar Roach trapped Dom Sibley (0) LBW in the first over of the Test. Captain Joe Root fell prey to Roston Chase's direct hit for 17 just before lunch. Ben Stokes playing as a specialist batsman at no. 4 was knocked over by a peach of a delivery by Roach for 20. Rory Burn chipped in with a well-made 57 before edging one to the slip off Chase, where Rakheem Cornwall took a brilliant one-handed catch. 

(Stuart Broad celebrating
Photo Courtesy: Twitter)

The Star of the show on Day 2 was Stuart Broad. His all-round efforts caught the West Indies well and truly off guard. At the start of the day England had slumped to 280/8 after losing four wickets for 18 runs. Stuart Broad came in and smacked a swashbuckling 62 off 45 balls to parry England to 369 in their first innings. Stuart Broad sparked a top-order collapse, striking on the fourth ball of his spell. England picked up wickets at regular intervals to reduce the visitors to 137/6 at stumps on Day 2. Stuart Broad and James Anderson paired together for the first time in this series shared figures of 2 for 17 at stumps. When bad light forced an early close, the West Indies were 232 runs behind, needing 33 more to avoid the follow-on. 

(Rory Burns and Dom Sibley celebrating 100-run opening stand
Photo Courtesy: Twitter)

On Day 3, Stuart Broad picked up all the remaining wickets of the West Indies’ first innings to bag 6/31. His six-wicket haul helped England bundle out the tourists for 197. In their second innings, England made 226/2 declared, with Burns and Dom Sibley (56) sharing a stand of 114 runs, England's first-century opening stand since 2016. Joe Root was unbeaten on 68 when he declared, amid concerns of a washout on Day 4, to set the West Indies a target of 399. England managed to pick up two quick wickets thanks to the man with a golden arm Stuart Broad. West Indies ended the day in deep trouble at 10/2.

(Covers on the field on Day 4
Photo Courtesy: Twitter)

Day 4 was just what the doctor ordered for the West Indies. Still needing 389 runs to win and eight wickets in hand, it would have been an uphill task for the visitors to take the game in the final day. But with Day 4 getting washed out, West Indies have an outside chance to survive a series defeat if they bat sensibly. England still have a strong hand in the Test, needing just eight wickets to win the series on the final day.

(Stuart Broad celebrating his 500th Test wicket
Photo Courtesy: Twitter)

On the final day of the series, the West Indies batting collapsed like a house of cards. Stuart Broad and Chris Woakes were the chief destructors. Broad joined the 500-wicket club in Tests, just the seventh bowler to achieve this feat. He finished with match figures of 10/67. Fellow pacer Woakes grabbed 5/50 in just 11 overs. Rain interruptions were the only roadblocks in England’s victory, but thankfully these breaks were nothing to worry about for the hosts. With a 269-run win, England retained the Wisden trophy. Broad received both Man of the Match and Series awards for his outstanding all-round efforts in the two Tests he played. The visitors, after a sensational win in the first Test, went downhill rather rapidly to lose the series 2-1.