The third and final Test match between West Indies and England saw the hosts opting to bowl first on a pitch that had 6-7 mm of grass. With a bit of moisture underneath the surface, it was a perfect setup for any team to bowl first, and West Indies made the most of it by knocking off the England top and middle order. But with a resilient 10th-wicket partnership, England almost evened out the day. Let’s look at some of the key points from the first day’s play.
Mayers’ bowling heroics
West Indies went in with five pace bowling options, and almost everyone justified that selection. For a change, England safely negotiated the first 10 overs of the innings, negating threats from Kemar Roach, Alzarri Joesph, and Jason Holder. However, the most impressive bowler in the first session was Kyle Mayers.
As compared to Joseph and Roach, Mayers was almost 15-20 kph slower than them, but what stood out was his accuracy – bowling straight towards the batters – and his use of the wobbled seam. With a green pitch that had enough grass, the conditions were perfect for bowlers who could exploit seam movement off the surface, and Mayers did just that.
Mayers didn’t move the ball a long way, but it was just enough to trouble the batters, not allowing them to shoulder their arms comfortably. It was evident from the dismissal of Joe Root, who stood far bit outside the crease to negate the swing movement but got sucked into a false shot due to the seam movement. Despite his limitations in his speed and variations, Mayers was the most economical bowler for West Indies, a result of his unwavering accuracy, finishing with figures of 2/13 from his 10 overs, including seven maidens.
The Grenada pitch
After two flat pitches that offered very little for the bowlers, the Grenada pitch compensated for the lack of contest. The pitch had 6-7 mm of live grass, and showers before the match ensured that the surface had moisture underneath it. Add all these, and it makes for an ideal setup for the quick bowlers.
There wasn’t enough swing in the air for the bowlers on the first day. It was the least swing (1.3 degrees) that the West Indies bowlers found in the first six overs of all the Test matches this series. Previously, they found 2.7 and 3.0 degrees in the first and second Tests, respectively. However, the seam movement that the hosts found in the first six overs of this Test (1.1 degrees) was the most that they found in the entire series. All of this resulted in England batters playing 27% false shots in the first 20 overs.
Leach and Mahmood save England from embarrassment
Despite the extravagant seam movement on offer, West Indies were not spot on with their line and length, regularly bowling too short and wide of off. With conditions not favorable for batting, England needed just that from the hosts to negotiate the tough period, but three of their top five batters got out as a result of lack of application rather than bowlers pricing them out.
West Indies were most threatening in the second session, where Roach and Joseph combined to push England on the backfoot, literally, especially with Joseph bowling in high 140s. Their efforts limited England to 67-7 and then 114-9. However, Jack Leach and Saqib Mahmood weren’t ready to throw in the towel.
The last-wicket pair combined for 218 balls – their longest since 2014. But they were also aided by the lack of discipline from the West Indies. When the pair added 50 runs, they had played 133 balls between them, but only 17 balls were hitting the stumps. Along with some wavered bowling, England were also helped by the pitch easing out as the day progressed, with the conditions getting easier to bat.
After finally bowling out England for 204 in the final over of the day, West Indies will still be a relatively happier side when they come out to bat on the second day. But England will be heartened by the resistance that was on display from their tail-enders and will be hoping that they get that confidence into their bowling.