West Indies vs England: Joe Root defends declaration after drawn 2nd Test
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England captain Joe Root defended his resolution to declare on the ultimate day of the drawn 2nd Test in opposition to the West Indies in Barbados.
By leaving his considerably conservative declaration till lunch, he left his bowlers solely 65 overs on a docile pitch to gather the ten second-innings West Indies wickets wanted for victory.
West Indies, chasing 282, misplaced three early wickets however captain Kraigg Braithwaite hit a fifty to stall England’s hopes of triggering a collapse on the ultimate day.
The hosts had been by no means going to think about chase 282 or perhaps a smaller goal and danger their probabilities on Day 5.
But Root in a put up match interview sounded as if he didn’t wish to give the hosts even a sniff of an opportunity.
“It’s always a tricky one isn’t it … trying to weigh that up,” he stated of the continually altering mathematical calculation surrounding the declaration.
“Just with how small this ground is and how strong the wind was, you don’t want to … give too many overs.
“To look again in hindsight, may now we have pulled out 10 overs earlier, would it not have made a lot distinction?”
He was speaking after West Indies finished on 135 for five, with captain Kraigg Brathwaite unbeaten on 56 in addition to his marathon first innings 160.
ROOT HAPPY WITH BATTING SHOW
Despite a second straight draw in the series, leaving everything up for grabs in the final Test in Grenada starting on Thursday, Root took plenty of encouragement from his team’s performance in a match where they were mostly the better team.
“It’s simply actually pleasing to see us make a considerable first innings whole for the primary time in a very long time,” he said of their 507 for nine in the first innings
“Hopefully the blokes have gained a number of confidence from it and we will replicate it many times and once more.”
Interim head coach Paul Collingwood added: “To play on pitches like that’s laborious work. We’re getting nearer to that win.
“It wasn’t to be but if we continue with that same kind of attitude it’ll be just around the corner.”
