West Indies v England: Joe Root’s ambition points to more adventurous future for England

The last time England shook hands on a draw was back in Sydney two months ago, clinging on by the skin of their teeth to narrowly avert a whitewash.

In Antigua it was Root pressing for victory, declaring 285 ahead after following Jonny Bairstow and Zak Crawley to a century.

Hunting 10 wickets on a pitch that had gone to sleep, England took four in a rush either side of tea before the redoubtable Nkrumah Bonner, who faced 493 deliveries in the match, and old foe Jason Holder closed the door.

Coming off the back of a troubled winter which saw sweeping changes in the coaching staff and playing group, Root was pleased to be back on the front foot.

“We want to win Test matches. It’s been a lean year, a lean tour of Australia and this was a chance to get back on track, to go for it,” said Root.

“I’m really proud of this team. I thought the attitude throughout the whole week was just fantastic. It’s filled me with a huge amount of confidence. We threw everything into the game and to be in the position we were is a really pleasing performance on what turned out to be a very docile wicket.

“They never stopped believing and that’s what we want to encourage in this team.

“We want to keep believing, keep fighting and show the supporters that have come out to watch here that we’re desperate to get some wins under our belt.

“I really hope the guys gain so much confidence from this. We’re very buoyant, we created pressure in the field. Over time stuff like that can make a real difference to a team.”

Much of England’s hope was down to Root, who reached 109 in the morning session to go second on the country’s all-time list of century-makers, pulling ahead of Kevin Pietersen to sit behind previous captain Sir Alastair Cook’s 33.

But it was his proactive leadership that did most to add some intrigue. The declaration was far from cavalier – and a final score of 147-4 suggests the West Indies never fancied the challenge – but English captains, including this one, have habitually erred on the conservative side. Root has also been burned before, watching the same opponents chase down 322 after declaring at Headingley back in 2017.

It was, therefore, refreshing and in keeping with the reboot of England’s Test team to see a little more courage from the man in charge

Root’s declaration gambit was a slightly more ambitious call than many expected, leaving his side 71 overs to try and push for a result.

It might have paid off had Mark Wood been fit to add an extra element of pace to the bowling group, but his worrying elbow injury denied the tourists their most ferocious option. His prospects look bleak for next week’s second Test in Barbados but the good news for England was the sight of Ben Stokes picking up the slack.

Initially slated to bowl no more than a handful of overs due to his recent side strain, he got through 40 in the match and proved a constant challenge. More importantly, he did not aggravate his own injury.

“We were trying to win a Test match – trying to tell Ben Stokes not to bowl was very difficult,” said Root.

“He was incredible throughout the whole game. We said we wanted to manage him the best we could throughout the game and although he’s probably bowled a bit more than we anticipated he has stood up to it very well.”

On Wood, he added: “I think we’re going to wait and do all the scans and stuff over in Barbados. So we’ll have some more information then.”

The day had started with England sitting pretty on 217 for one and with three clear options on the table: grind the home bowlers down and accept the draw, play safe with the declaration or go early.

Crawley was gone for 121 before the plan became clear, adding just four to his overnight score before being yorked by Holder, but Root soon followed him to three figures.

After safely converting his 84no he carefully kissed a necklace, later revealed as a present from his two children in return for a promise to wear it at the crease.

The dash for quick runs sped the game up considerably, Root losing his leg stump to Alzarri Joseph and Dan Lawrence carting Holder for six in a lively 37. By the time Stokes and Ben Foakes made hasty exits, England had lost four for 19 and the declaration was close.

There was a brief period either side of tea when things appeared to be building to a crescendo as the scoreboard slid from a stable 59 without loss to a shaky 67 for four. Ben Stokes, effectively filling in for Wood despite his own precarious fitness issues, trapped Kraigg Brathwaite (33) with a shin-high shooter before Jack Leach conjured three quick breakthroughs before the West Indies showed resistance.

The teams travelled yesterday with the next match beginning in Bridgetown on Wednesday.