Key events
4th over: West Indies 17-0 (King 6, Lewis 10) Turner’s run-up reminds me a little of Glenn McGrath, though his action is more chest-on. A previously excellent second over is ruined when Lewis swivel-pulls the last delivery round the corner for six.
England need wickets plural.
3rd over: West Indies 9-0 (King 6, Lewis 2) King gets a thick inside-edge to another textbook inswinger from Archer, who is bowling stump to stump, just full of a good length. A maiden.
“I love your optimism that this will still be a 50-over game rather than the Windies beating our T20 team in less than 20 overs in what should be an ODI…” writes Tom Van der Gucht. “Then again, Turner will be an unknown quantity an me could catch them cold and Archer and Rashid are still Archer and Rashid.”
I’m just dealing in facts; you can’t get cancelled for facts. I do think West Indies will win but I’m not sure they’ll romp to victory unless the ball starts to skid on under the lights.
2nd over: West Indies 9-0 (King 6, Lewis 2) The mysterious John Turner, finally making his England debut almost a year after he was first included in a white-ball squad, will share the new ball. He starts with a terrific lifter that hits a slightly startled King on the arm.
That sets the tone for a superb first over in which King edges at catchable height for four and also inside-edges a single on the leg side.
1st over: West Indies 4-0 (King 1, Lewis 2) Archer’s second ball is a beautiful inswinger that Brandon King inside-edges past leg stump for a single. That was very similar to the ball with which he dismissed Aaron Finch for a golden duck in the 2019 semi-final.
England need early wickets and will be encouraged by the swing that Archer is getting. Later in the over he tries a short ball that is cuffed for a couple by Evin Lewis. The outfield is painfully slow.
We’re back and Jofra Archer is about to bowl.
Play to restart at 11pm GMT!
And it’s still a 50-over game.
“I hope John Turner is a spinner,” writes Toby.
I’m afraid he’s not, and there’s bad news about Eddie Paynter as well.
The covers are back on. Tremendous.
“USA are currently 242 for 8 after 43 overs, chasing 318 to beat Scotland in the Cricket World Cup League 2 series in Grand Prairie,” writes Simon McMahon. “Brandon ‘Baz’ McMullen made 151 for Scotland, his third ODI hundred and the fifth highest score for Scotland in ODIs.”
It became pretty obvious during the T20 World Cup, particularly in the Australia game, that he is a seriously good player.
It sounds like the weather has improved in Antigua. No restart time as yet though.
“Murder On The Doorstep, eh?” sniffs Damian Clarke. “Tempting. But an early night sounds a better option. Can I have your permission to finish my jigsaw, my bottle of wine, and the futility of my day?”
Ah gowan. Murder on the Doorstep is actually pretty interesting; there’s a good BBC podcast series on it as well. Very strange story.
Weather update: it’s still raining
It doesn’t look as heavy as it was half an hour ago, although the view from Whitstable isn’t the best so I might be wrong. What we can say with certainty is that there will be no play for the forseeable; even if it stops raining, the clean-up operation will take a while.
“If it’s anything like the downpour that we woke up to on Saba this morning, and which was apparently heading towards Antigua, play is well and truly over,” writes Chris. “But, oh boy, do we need the rain in these parts. Better had it been yesterday or tomorrow, though.”
The rain should help the ball skid on when West Indies bat, which will make it even tougher for England to defend 209. You may wish to consider alternative entertainment; if you’re in the UK, Murder on the Doorstep is on Channel 5 at 10pm.
It’s hooning down
In case you missed it, England announced their new central contracts list earlier today. There were no big surprises. But read this piece anyway.
It’s raining. Tremendous. Hopefully it’s just a passing shower.
Thanks Tim, hello everyone. England’s total feels below-par, even on such a sluggish pitch, and you’d expect West Indies to get the job done. On the plus side – because there’s always a plus side – we’re finally going to see John Turner bowl for England. He averages less than 20 with the ball in all three forms, and if that statistic doesn’t get you excited I’m afraid you’re dead inside.
England kept half-getting going, then being pegged back. All their top six got to 15, and not one of them reached 50. Jacob Bethell and Jordan Cox offered a glimpse of star quality but only managed a pair of cameos. Liam Livingstone and Sam Curran showed their grit and nous by adding 68. But the innings belonged to West Indies – to Shai Hope for his astute captaincy, to Jayden Seales for his Curtly Ambrose impression, and above all to Gudakesh Motie for grabbing a four-for, including both the scalps that really mattered.
That’s my cue to go and see what’s in the fridge. Thanks for your company and correspondence, which made up in quality what it perhaps lacked in volume. Do stick around to see what West Indies can make of this target, and what Rob Smyth makes of them.
WICKET! Rashid c Forde b Joseph 15 (England 209 all out)
Rash flicks to midwicket, and that’s it! Turner is left high and dry on 2.
45th over: England 209-9 (Rashid 15, Turner 2) As the lights get brighter, England hang in there and add to their collection of singles.
44th over: England 206-9 (Rashid 13, Turner 1) Archer got a huge top edge: as skyers go, that was the skyest. So Alzarri Joseph has a wicket at last and here is John Turner, the fast bowler who toured West Indies a year ago without getting a game. Some people have wondered whether he really exists, but if not, he’s quite a convincing deep-fake. He gets off the mark first ball, unlike poor old Jamie Overton, with a neat deflection into the leg side.
WICKET! Archer c Hope b Joseph 7 (England 204-9)
And yes, it’s another skyer.
43rd over: England 200-8 (Rashid 12, Archer 3) If Adil Rashid hadn’t been a joy to watch for so long with his googlies, he would have been a joy to watch with the bat. Facing Forde, he whips through midwicket, all wrists and no effort, for a much-needed four. He likes it so much, he does it again, flicking a full ball over square leg. Up comes the 200 and there are still seven overs to go.
42nd over: England 191-8 (Rashid 4, Archer 2) Alzarri Joseph produces a spicy bouncer which hits Jofra Archer somewhere near the collarbone. Archer doesn’t seem too bothered as he jogs a leg-bye, but Ian Bishop says “Brave man, bowling a bouncer to Archer.” Maybe Joseph has worked out that he’s unlikely to get a bat.
41st over: England 188-8 (Rashid 3, Archer 1) That was beautifully done by Motie, who gave the first ball of the over some flight, tempting Curran to go downtown. He did – straight to the man at long-on. He batted well but as he stomps off, he takes most of England’s hopes with him. Motie finishes with magnificent figures, 10-0-41-4.
WICKET!! Curran c Hetmyer b Motie 37 (England 187-8)
Curran holes out!
40th over: England 187-7 (Curran 37, Rashid 3) A few more singles off Seales.
“Hello again.” Hello Tom van der Gucht. “Livingstone holds a strange place in my affections whereby I sort of want him to be amazing and achieve the potential that might be there, but also feel frustrated at being underwhelmed by him so many times in the past when he’s thrown it away when set. Yet, with Buttler’s grasp on the captaincy at its weakest in memory, could this be Livingstone’s chance to stake a claim (not just in the ODI team after being jettisoned) but as a mercurial talent who leads from the front with a swagger and cheeky grin? Just the sort of leader McCullum loves… “
39th over: England 181-7 (Curran 34, Rashid 1) So that was two wickets in two balls for Gudakesh Motie, and England have collapsed again, losing three wickets for 16. Mousley played a slog-sweep into the wind; Overton played a regular sweep at thin air.
On the plus side, Curran is still there. And Rash can bat. But 260 is looking almost impossible from here.
WICKET! Overton LBW b Motie 0 (England 179-7)
Jamie Overton’s ODI debut … and he’s out first ball! He misses a straight one that keeps low. Maybe Rod Tucker thinks it’s going under the stumps. Anyway, Hope reviews and he’s spot on.
WICKET! Mousley c Lewis b Motie 8 (England 179-6)
Yes, it’s another catch in the deep!
38th over: England 177-5 (Curran 33, Mousley 6) Seales keeps Curran honest with a sharp bouncer, well ducked, but the other five balls all go for singles. England are hanging in there.
37th over: England 172-5 (Curran 31, Mousley 3) A few singles off Motie. Carlos Brathwaite, on commentary, points out that Hope could do with Chase now as Mousley is a left-hander like Curran.
36th over: England 168-5 (Curran 29, Mousley 1) Hope brings back Seales, who set the tone at the top of the innings. He almost gets another wicket first ball as Curran sends a skyer to Carty, who can’t cling on at deep extra. Mousley gets off the mark with a single, shovelled into the covers, and unfurls a broad smile.
35th over: England 165-5 (Curran 27, Mousley 0) The spinners have been excellent, but that was the first wicket either of them had taken. Motie now has 7-0-32-1 and out comes Dan Mousley, on his international debut, with a job to do.
WICKET!! Livingstone c&b Motie 48 (England 165-5)
Just when he’s taken charge of the game, England’s new captain scoops the ball back to the bowler. At least it wasn’t a skyer.
34th over: England 160-4 (Livingstone 44, Curran 26) Hope keeps Chase on for his final over, and Livingstone says thanks very much. He hits another six, whipped over long-on, and then whips again for four. And then he’s dropped! At midwicket. It was low, but not so difficult.
And that’s drinks, with Livingstone now leading by example. He and Curran, two men for a crisis, have added 67.
33rd over: England 147-4 (Livingstone 33, Curran 24) Motie restores order with three dots and three singles.
We have a fifty partnership!
32nd over: England 144-4 (Livingstone 32, Curran 22) Anything Curran can do, Livingstone can do bigger. He charges down the track and Chase, so economical up till now, finds himself launched for a great big six. That brings up the first fifty partnership of the day – 51 off 11.1 overs. Is this a recovery we see before us?
31st over: England 137-4 (Livingstone 26, Curran 21) Shot! Sam Curran plays a lovely straight drive off Motie, pinpointing the gap behind the bowler and finding it with great precision.
30th over: England 130-4 (Livingstone 25, Curran 15) Chase, as usual, hands out only singles. If he was at home at Hallowe’en, it would be strictly Mars Celebrations, no actual bars of chocolate – not that I can talk.
And suddenly we’ve reached the 30-over mark. Back in the day, teams were expected to double their score from here. If England manage that, they’ll be doing well – but they’ll only have the standard first-innings score at this ground, 260, which is never enough.
29th over: England 126-4 (Livingstone 23, Curran 13) Shai Hope, who has played his hand masterfully, brings back Motie. Livingstone responds by giving up on brute force and playing a delicate little lap for two. A caption reveals that England have now scored a century – of dot balls.
28th over: England 122-4 (Livingstone 20, Curran 12) Another over from Chase, another four singles.
This is nice from Rob Knap. “The ideal time for watching overseas matches came up in a recent liveblog I think (can’t remember if it was you manning the deck for that discussion or not!), but still… “ No it wasn’t me – I just enjoyed reading it.
“I’m pottering around with the cricket on in the background, the stresses of the day melting away a little, for now at least. Cricket matches have often felt like comfort blankets to me, and I think an ODI in the West Indies is just about the most reassuring of all: it’s on after work, the skies are usually blue, there’s an outcome by the end of the day, and compared to other formats the rhythms of the game just feel more relaxing. Or maybe it’s the importance I give to the format: I don’t mind so much how England do compared to watching them in Tests, whereas in T20s I don’t care enough.
“Having typed that out thoughtfully, Bethell gets out and I’m annoyed and cursing at the TV! Ah well…”
27th over: England 118-4 (Livingstone 18, Curran 10) Livingstone has some power in his arms and he uses it now to pull Joseph for four. That was pure village blacksmith.
Seven off the over, which is riches by England’s recent standards. Every member of their new-look top six has now reached double figures. Can somebody please make 30?
26th over: England 111-4 (Livingstone 12, Curran 9) Roston Chase doesn’t have any wickets yet, but he’s been taking them at the other end. His idea of a pricey over is going for four singles, as he does now.
Halfway: England getting stuck
25th over: England 107-4 (Livingstone 10, Curran 7) Forde, who has improved his figures to 7-0-36-2, gives way to Joseph. He keeps the pressure on by conceding only a single, and that’s the halfway stage. The wicket is a bit sticky, but I’m not sure it’s as bad as England are making it look.
Here’s Tom van der Gucht. “I liked Guy Hornsby’s comment,” he says, “about this being a T20 team playing 50 overs. With so many big hitting not-quite all-rounders, it almost feels like a Hong Kong Sixes team. They’re just missing Ronnie Irani to round the team off and add some dibbly dobbler seam action.” Good line.
24th over: England 106-4 (Livingstone 10, Curran 6) Curran, facing Chase, takes a kamikaze single and only gets away with it because the throw is too high. Another thrifty over for the Windies, two off it.
23rd over: England 104-4 (Livingstone 9, Curran 5) Forde, in this second spell, was threatening to turn into Seales. Livingstone tries to show him who’s boss by muscling a cut through the ring, but it brings only two. Curran does better, gliding square for four. That’s the first boundary for 55 balls. Old-school!
22nd over: England 97-4 (Livingstone 6, Curran 1) The bad news for Livingstone and Sam Curran is that they have a rebuilding job on their hands. The good news is that they both have plenty of time. Curran is often better at livening up the boring middle overs than he is at blasting at the death.
21st over: England 94-4 (Livingstone 4, Curran 0) Oh, England. Wherever they are in the world, whatever form of cricket they’re playing, they always have a collapse in them.
