WI vs ENG | 1st Test | Day 2: Bonner-Holder partnership steadies Windies on rain-marred outing

Intermittent rainfall played spoilsport throughout Day 2 of the first Test match between West Indies and England to steal the joy of what is still looking like a promising Test match.

The home side was good for the most part of the day, first after capping off the English innings to 311 runs letting them play not more than 15 overs on the day. Jayden Seals was the star of the first session for Windies picking up two wickets with accurate short balls. The prized one of them was of Chris Woakes who was caught on the glove with a rising one and only managed to feather it back to the keeper. The other one was to Craig Overton who got trapped at short leg but it was more a catcher’s wicket than it was of the bowlers.

Jonny Bairstow added less than 30 runs to his overnight score and was the final wicket of the England innings trying top edging an Alzarri Joseph ball. He received a standing ovation from the crowd as he walked off after scoring a stunning 140 runs from 259 balls.

Bairstow returned the faith of the selectors after much chopping and changing aimed at changing the fortunes of the England Test team. He was the lone centurion of the English team in the torrid tour Down Under and once again rescued England after they were bogged down at 48/4 in the morning session of Day 1. 

Returning to bowl, England found no luck against a free flowing Kraigg Brathwaite who hit 7 fours and 1 six. The new leader of the English attack, Chris Woakes was all over the place giving away 23 runs in his first three overs.

Windies looked fairly comfortable against the troika of Jack Leach, Woakes and Overton and managed a flowing run rate of close to 4 per over. Just as Brathwaite and John Campbell seemed to take the attack to the opposition after lunch, Craig Overton brought the breakthrough with a short one. It was one of those incidents that could have either gone for a boundary or it could have feathered to the keeper. And the latter happened. Campbell, looking to take on a short ball down the leg side, gloved it to Ben Foakes and brought on the first breakthrough for England.

The introduction of Ben Stokes and Mark Wood soon after helped England’s cause as the batters found it difficult to negotiate both. Wood brought the first wicket with a cross seamer nearing 150ks trapping captain Brathwaite (55 off 70) at gully. 

Two more wickets fell after this, first with Ben Stokes edging Shamarah Brooks and then Woakes trapping Jermaine Blackwood right at the stroke of tea. It was the faintest of inside edges from the batter then went to gully after striking the thigh pad. It was called not out initially but captain Joe Root was confident about using DRS. 

Four wickets down at 127, West Indies resisted the rest of the day with Jason Holder and Nkrumah Bonner in one of the fascinating spells of play. Despite being rain-affected, England were inspiring in their bowling effort with Jack Leach bowling 9 maidens in a row alongside Mark Wood who was threatening with his reverse swing. 

The gritty Windies batters managed to see off the attack and put together a 75-run partnership in 190 balls to close the day at 202/4, 109 runs behind the first innings score of the opponents. The play was brought to a premature end on the day, after rain took over once again before the allotted quota of overs could be completed.

The third day looks to be a promising encounter, but might be marred with rain in the morning. Jason Holder’s record against England is telling and the visitors would surely be wary of that going into the moving day of the Test match.

The home team does have a little batting left in their ranks with keeper Joshua Da Silva and Alzarri Joseph yet to arrive at the crease and they would hope to put up at least 150, if not 200 runs on the day before they can start defending again.