England finally overcame the West Indies on the fourth day of the last test match to end the losing streak that had plagued them from the beginning of the year.
Skipper Joe Root and most of his teammates redeemed themselves with an all-round performance to save England from an embarrassing whitewash, which seemed almost inevitable after the humiliation at Antigua. The suspension of Jason Holder, captain of the West Indies, proved fatal for his team as the domination they had wielded over the visitors vanished at St Lucia.
The first innings sailed smoothly for the West Indies till the 19th over, when Moeen Ali struck twice in two deliveries, removing both the opening batsmen. Then, returning pacer Mark Wood gave the Windies a taste of their own medicine, bombarding the batsmen with a barrage of short deliveries that regularly breached the 90 mph barrier.
The hosts seemed to have forgotten the answers to their own questions after Wood ripped through their batting line-up and completed his 5 wicket haul, when he bundled up the innings for 154 to give his side a commendable lead of 123 runs.
On the third day, Root lead by example with a brilliant century that personified the great qualities of a good test batsman, after the English top order roughened up the dreaded new ball. Joe Denly, Jos Buttler and Ben Stokes piled on the misery for Kraigg Brathwaite as he turned to his scarce spin resources.
Root declared the English innings at 365 right after his wicket fell on the morning of the fourth day. With Stokes stranded on 48, one must wonder whether Jonny Bairstow was padded up at all or if the bowlers were getting too impatient to have another go at the beleaguered hosts.
The chase of the mammoth 484 began remarkably well for James Anderson, as he picked 3 wickets in the first 19 deliveries of his opening spell. Roston Chase was the only batsman to prosper, as the rest of his team collapsed around him. The last innings ended at 252, giving the visitors a memorable victory by 232 runs at the end of an other-wise forgettable series for England.
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