WI vs ENG | 2nd Test | Day 3: Twin centuries from Brathwaite & Blackwood leads Windies fightaback

West Indies were steady at 288/4 at the end of day 3 in the second Test match against England in Barbados on Saturday. Twin centuries from captain Kraigg Brathwaite and vice captain Jermain Blackwood kept the English attack at bay on an absolute flat track that frustrated the bowlers and made Kemar Roach call out the overall conditions of pitches in West Indies.

It was a day of patience from both the batters who held the innings together when the hosts were down by three wickets for 101 runs in the 45th over. Brathwaite carried on with his defensive approach not letting anything through his defence, which essentially took result out of the equation from this Test match, but Blackwood on the other hand, scored runs at a brisk pace.

There were several moments of fortune for the latter, first when he was struck on the pad without having scored a run, and England chose not to review the umpire’s decision. And then when debutant rattled his stumps with a dipping yorker only to later realise that he had overstepped. Blackwood’s 102-run innings eventually was ended by part-timer Daniel Lawrence who caught him plumb in front of the stumps with an off spinning delivery.

The duo at that point had added 183 runs between them, playing 411 deliveries.

At the day’s end Brathwaite was in the crease alongside nightwatchman Alzarri Joseph.

An uneventful day by most standards, there were moments where England got into a war of words with Blackwood. Their frustration was understandable after a slow moving day and the umpires promptly came forward to nip the matter.

The outlook of day four seems grim if the pitch stays the same. With Jason Holder and Joshua Da Silva yet to come, it can be expected that Windies would go on to put up a huge total. If England can manage to scalp quick wickets, the match still might be alive, but it is highly unlikely that Windies will collapse even on the final day of this pitch.

It needs to be remembered that England were aggressive with their declaration in the previous Test as well, letting Windies chase a competitive total in the final day of the game.