Published: Apr 23, 2015, 08:34 AM (IST)
Edited: Apr 23, 2015, 01:12 PM (IST)
England ended Day Two of the second Test at Grenada at 74 for no loss, trailing West Indies by 225 runs. West Indies were earlier bowled out for 299 after some decent performances from their tail-enders. Pramod Ananth lists the highlights of Day Two.
1. Rain plays spoil sport: It was raining once again at Grenada just like it did on Day One. It started raining heavily after just 6.5 overs were bowled in the day. The players rushed into the pavilion, with Marlon Samuels just four away from his century. The rain showed no signs of slowing down and as a result the umpires decided to take an early lunch. Play finally resumed after the lunch break as the rains had eased down. The players went off the field again after that, with Samuels on 98. After a frustrating wait, play resumed once again.
2. Marlon Samuels reaches seventh Test ton: Samuels finally got to his seventh Test century with a boundary. It took him 226 deliveries to get there and he seemed delighted to get to the landmark. He weathered the storm well on Day One and looked set to go on and get a big score, but a rash shot after that led to his downfall. He managed to get West Indies out of trouble after they had lost two early wickets yesterday.
3. Devendra Bishoo and Shannon Gabriel’s 10th wicket stand: Bishoo and Gabriel made it to the playing XI in place of Sulieman Benn and Jerome Taylor respectively. They made full use of their opportunity as they managed to put on 52 runs for the final wicket that got West Indies to 299. Bishoo was dismissed for 30, whereas Gabriel was unbeaten on 20. West Indies certainly had the momentum going into the innings break.
4. Stuart Broad’s four-wicket haul: Broad picked up three wickets to add to the one he had taken already on Day One. Broad was bowling at good pace and was accurate more often than not. He has certainly answered his critics who questioned him about his recent dip in form. WATCH: Stuart Broad gives credit to fast-bowlers English
5. Alastair Cook and Jonathan Trott ensure England advantage: Trott and skipper Cook made an excellent start to the England innings. They put on an unbeaten 74 for the first wicket, and will look to continue when they resume play on Day Three. Cook also became England’s second highest run-scorer in Tests, surpassing Alec Stewart. He now remains behind only Graham Gooch, and in all likelihood will go past him in the near future.
(Pramod Ananth is a reporter at CricketCountry. He has represented Karnataka table tennis under-15, and is a hardcore supporter of Liverpool FC. His Twitter handle is @pramz)
