2nd Test: Joe Root hits 25th hundred as England take command vs West Indies on Day 1
India Today
Joe Root lit up the Kensington Oval with his 25th Test hundred as England made a strong start to the second match of the series against the West Indies.
Captain Joe Root scored his second straight and 25th overall Test hundred, an unbeaten 119, to help England take a commanding position on Day 1 of the second Test against West Indies in Barbados on Wednesday. Even though Dan Lawrence fell for 91 on the final ball of the first day, England took the honours after winning the toss, reaching 244 for three at stumps on a flat Kensington Oval pitch in Bridgetown.
Around 8,500 visiting fans were present to take in the spectacle and all four corners of the famous old ground received a wave of the England captain’s bat as they sang his name long and loud. By reaching a quarter-century of Test hundreds, Root vaulted past illustrious names such as Viv Richards, Greg Chappell and Mohammad Yousuf as well as contemporaries David Warner and Kane Williamson.
Not that Root was without a bit of luck, dropped by the keeper when on 34, not long after he appeared to get an edge to a Jason Holder delivery that West Indies captain Kraigg Brathwaite opted not to review. West Indies' largely fruitless day in the field went from bad to worse late on when Alzarri Joseph failed to take a sharp but regulation chance at slip that would have sent Lawrence packing for 72.
Zak Crawley followed up his century in Antigua with a seven-ball duck. Uncertain about whether or not to play Jayden Seales, he sent a tentative edge straight through to the keeper. England reached lunch at 47/1 as Alex Lees showed determination, managing just 16 runs in two hours of occupation by waiting for loose deliveries.
Lees, coming off two failures in Antigua, showed a determination not to give his wicket away cheaply, playing with understandable caution. He made 30 before being out plumb lbw to spinner Veerasammy Permaul, lasting 138 balls and playing his part in taking the shine off the new ball.
