England 209 (Livingstone 48, Motie 4-41) vs West Indies
In a new-look England team featuring four debutants, it was a familiar nemesis who wrecked their hopes of a competitive total in the first ODI in Antigua.
After losing the toss and being asked to bat first, England’s innings was characterised by timid accumulation, reminiscent of their off-colour displays at the 2023 World Cup, interspersed with moments of frustration, with the majority of their wickets falling to misjudged attempts to clear the inner ring.
West Indies bowled with nous from the outset, not least Seales, who shrugged off a wicketless tour of Sri Lanka earlier this month by claiming both of England’s openers inside his first five overs. Matthew Forde’s lack of extreme pace was scarcely any less effective on a receptive surface that offered grip and bounce to his cutters, and though Alzarri Joseph was expensive in his initial spell – not helped by some lax work in the outfield – he bounced back well with two late wickets, plus a pinpoint bouncer that had Jofra Archer hopping (a sight that his batters might not have appreciated).
England’s lack of familiarity with the rhythms of 50-over cricket were writ large across their performance, with each of the top four falling for scores between 17 and 27, and none of them at a strike-rate quicker than 82.
The first to fall was Phil Salt, whose third-ball blaze through the covers was not a harbinger of the riches on offer on a notably sluggish outfield that added to the sense of an innings with no momentum. On 18 from 29 balls, Salt hoisted a toe-ended drive through the line off Seales, and was well caught by Joseph, running back in the covers, as his innings came to an end inside the powerplay for the 18th time in 23 ODIs.
Will Jacks, promoted to opener in the absence of Ben Duckett and the injured Jos Buttler, produced a near identical knock of 19 from 27, eventually skying an attempted launch off Seales to Motie at mid-on. Jordan Cox projected confidence at No.3 in the first act of his extended international audition, with the prospect of a Test debut in New Zealand looming next month, but ruined the impression with a horrid hack to deep third off Forde, while Jacob Bethell – another Test debutant-in-waiting – looked sparky as he kept the strike rotating, but also fell to an ungainly slog into the covers.
Jamie Overton, making his ODI debut, had been singled out for his long-levered ability to hit sixes down the ground, but fell lbw to Motie as he missed a first-ball sweep, while Dan Mousley’s international debut was scarcely any more memorable, though he did at least connect well on the flat pull off Motie that picked out Evin Lewis on the midwicket boundary for 6.
Adil Rashid, England’s leading ODI run-scorer in this deeply inexperienced squad, then extended that lead by a further 15 runs to drag the total past 200. But after Archer’s skied slap off Joseph had landed in Shai Hope’s gloves, Rashid was last man out with 29 balls left unused, and with John Turner, England’s fourth debutant, unbeaten on 2.
West Indies’ hopes of a swift chase were dented by a mid-innings downpour, which delayed the resumption.
Andrew Miller is UK editor of ESPNcricinfo. @miller_cricket
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