Joe Root and Dan Lawrence combined to construct a 164 runs stand for the third wicket to guide England to 244-3 at stumps on day 1 of the 2nd Test match.
Root was given two reprieves in his unbeaten knock of 119* off 242, consisting of 12 fours. West Indies did not review when Root was caught behind off the bowling of Jason Holder on 23. Later he was dropped by Joshua de Silva on 32 off Kemar Roach.
Dan Lawrence, too, was given a life when Alzarri Joseph dropped him on 71 off the bowling of Jayden Seales. West Indies was sloppy in the field, which has cost them heavily in the first innings of the 2nd Test.
Root and Dan Lawrence capitalised on their chances to grasp the match from the Caribbean team’s grip. Root scored his second consecutive hundred in the Test series to propel his tally of hundreds in Test cricket to 25. While Dan Lawrence notched up his highest Test score ever in his gritty knock of 91, comprising 13 fours and a six.
Earlier in the day, Root chose wisely to bat first, and his strategy to wear down the West Indies bowlers worked perfectly as the Caribbeans could not maintain their rhythm after the first session of the day’s play.
England did not have a great start as the centurion from the last match, Zak Crawley, got out for a seven ball duck. But Root calmed things in the middle with Alex Lees to see off the first session. Lees departed on the brink of lunch when Permaul snared him on 30.
Post lunch, it was England’s game all the way. Lawrence and Root frustrated the Caribbean bowlers, who toiled hard on a humid day. Holder dismissed Lawrence on the last ball of the first day in nervous nineties as England posted 244-3 at stumps.