World Cup 2019, Match 19: England vs Windies – Who Said What

In the week marred by rain, the hosts were taking on the “dark horses” and to some surprise and a lot of delight for the fans, it was a full game. For England who have been surprisingly inconsistent, it was about maintaining the momentum while a win here would give Windies all the confidence in the world. But after both the teams had done their bit Eoin Morgan’s side proved to be a far superior unit.

Under overcast conditions, Morgan won the toss and put Jason Holder’s men in. He had the bowlers to really take the challenge onto the opposition. Jofra Archer and Chris Woakes know how to make use of the new ball in conditions that assist them. It didn’t take long for Woakes to breakthrough and Evin Lewis continued his thin run in the World Cup.

Chris Gayle continued to bat with a lot of calm but after surviving a planned dismissal attempt when Mark Wood dropped him at third man, he took on the short ball from Liam Plunkett and was caught at backward square leg. Shai Hope also couldn’t convert and was Wood’s first scalp in the game.

On the back of Nicholas Pooran’s maiden ODI fifty (63 off 78 balls) and his partnership with Shimron Hetmyer who contributed 39, West Indies managed to post 212 runs on the board before being bowled out. Archer and Wood shared three wickets each while Joe Root was a surprise name on the bowling charts having scalped a couple.

The surface was really good for batting and though England had lost their opener Jason Roy and skipper Morgan to hamstring and back troubles it wasn’t quite a challenge. Joe Root was promoted to open the innings with Jonny Bairstow. As expected England had a flourishing opening stand and was only broken on 95.

Chris Woakes was promoted to No.3 and Root anchored the innings and they went about the business at ease. The runs were coming without a lot of risks and in the end, the hosts got over the line with 8 wickets and 101 balls to spare as Root remained unbeaten on 100 while Woakes had contributed 40 before being dismissed.

Here is what the two captains and the Man of the Match said:

Joe Root the MoM said: “It was a really good toss to have won today, and it was good to take the opportunity and use the conditions. Rest of the guys helped build big partnerships. (About opening the batting) It’s just nice to get some time in the park. Tried to hit the gaps, and it’s not much difference between opening and lower down.

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The way Woakes also came in and batted was very good. We spent two days in the indoor nets and (played) plenty of short stuff there. You need to have the method and you need to back yourself to do it. We pride ourselves in having our basics covered.

(About his bowling) I’ve just been trying a few things. When you don’t have the skills some of the other guys have, you try out a few things. (About his Ian Botham celebration) Still a work in progress. Tried it a couple of days ago,” Root said.

The losing captain Jason Holder said: “We didn’t have enough runs on the board. We lost wickets at regular intervals. The toss was a bit crucial. We lost the game in the middle overs. Our batters needed to take more ownership. One or two careless shots. We needed to dig in deep and need to correct it. We didn’t get the short balls high enough. Were a bit erratic as well. We are carrying a few niggles in the dressing room and need to get back fit ahead of the Bangladesh game. We need to tighten up in all three departments.”

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England captain Eoin Morgan said: “(About injuries to him and Roy) It is my back. Roy tweaked his hammy as well. I have had a lot of back spasms as well in the past. It will be 24-48 hours before we get to know about Jason. We have had a really good day at the office. The bowlers stuck to plans and they created chances throughout the game.

As a whole, we were brilliant. Root has been our glue. He looked phenomenal. He is a pleasure to captain. He is not flustered in any situation. I think our plans have remained the same. The personnel have changed and it has been unfortunate to leave a few guys out. We have struggled against Afghanistan in the past and won’t take them lightly,” he stated.