At 54-5 in their first innings on day two of the third Test against the West Indies at Edgbaston, England’s batters were faced with a decision to make: Do they go on the offensive, or dig in?
As it happened, they chose the latter, with century partnerships between Joe Root and Ben Stokes, and Jamie Smith and Chris Woakes, helping secure a 94-run lead as they were eventually bowled out for 376.
Only on the third and final day, when they needed 82 for victory and captain Stokes was promoted up the order with Zak Crawley away having a scan on a finger injury, did England produce the sort of explosive batting display which has defined this era, racing to victory inside eight overs after the West Indies were dismissed for 175.
Last year’s drawn Ashes series and the 4-1 defeat in India at the start of 2024 prompted a revision of the team’s ‘Bazball’ approach which had initially swept all before them home and away, and head coach Brendon McCullum saw the 3-0 series win over the West Indies as a sign of their evolution.
“We know we’re not the finished article, but we made a step forward in this series,” McCullum told Sky Sports. “Nothing is ever scripted in terms of our approach and how we want to play.
“It’s about trying to allow the guys to get themselves in a calm dressing room, be able to be totally present in the moment, read the situation, trust themselves and immerse themselves in what the game situation is, then back themselves to let their game unfold and adapt.
“Eighteen months onwards, with the batting group, which is pretty much consistent with that, maybe we’ve just matured a bit and we understand the varying skills our batting group has and we’re trying to be a bit more consistent with the type of players we want to be.”
While much of the focus during McCullum’s and Stokes’ time at the helm of England’s Test team has been on their attacking approach with the bat, it was arguably the bowlers who grabbed most of the headlines during the first three home Tests of the summer.
With England’s leading all-time wicket-taker James Anderson calling time on his international career following the first Test at Lord’s, there were plenty of questions around how the bowling unit would fare, but two new stars came to the fore.
Gus Atkinson, who finished with match figures of 12-106 on debut in Anderson’s last Test, was named player of the series after taking 22 wickets across the three games, while Shoaib Bashir firmly established himself as England’s first-choice spinner.
With Stokes back to being able to bowl regularly after overcoming his long-running knee issues and Mark Wood causing all sorts of problems with his 90mph-plus deliveries as well, including taking a stunning 5-40 in the West Indies’ second innings in Birmingham, McCullum could not have been happier.
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Mark Wood took five wickets at the end of West Indies’ second innings in an incredible display of bowling for England.
“I’m really pleased with the development of bowlers who have been given opportunities in this series,” McCullum said.
“Gus Atkinson has been absolutely fantastic – his ability to bowl close to 90 mph and hit the seam, and then flip his plans and bowl bouncers for a sustained period of time and follow the plan of the captain.
“Then you add in Mark Wood, it’s just freakish what he can do. Then Chris Woakes has been exceptional with his skills, Ben Stokes has been able to swing the ball, then you add in Shoaib Bashir who has been an absolute gem.
“You’ve got a nice, rounded bowling line-up and you need that in different conditions.
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Ben Stokes reflects on a successful third Test against the West Indies at Edgbaston and heaps praise on Mark Wood.
“We’ve found a couple who look really exciting.”
Seamer Atkinson and wicketkeeper Smith were both given their England Test debuts in this series, while it was Bashir’s first opportunity on home soil after showcasing his talent in the more spin-conducive conditions in India in January and February.
New Zealander McCullum is enthused by the cricketing talent he has seen on these shores and his priority is to ensure he and Stokes foster an environment which allows it to flourish on the international stage.
“We’ve got quite incredible talent in this country,” McCullum said. “When I turned up a couple years ago, it took about two weeks to work out talent is not a problem in this country.
“It’s how you harness that talent, the opportunities you give that talent and how you get the best out of it.
“Hopefully, we’re creating the environment that gives them that best chance.”
Butcher: England have shown refinement and improvement
Former England batter Mark Butcher, speaking on Sky Sports Cricket:
“Even though they had a couple of new players in the side and shuffled the pack a bit – obviously there was James Anderson’s retirement and the emotion around that in the first Test – England have got a lot of battle-hardened players in that team right now.
“They were chastened a little bit over the course of the winter and perhaps looked at ways where they could not give away winning positions or allow teams to come back into Test matches.
“England have shown refinement and improvement to what they’ve already done and what they were already capable of, and the difference then becomes England can produce that skill and quality over long periods of time.
“The West Indies are only capable of doing it once a day for maybe an hour and a half, and were then founding wanting when England pushed back at them because they didn’t have the discipline and experience to keep prolonging it.”
England’s Test series vs West Indies
England’s three-Test series against Sri Lanka gets under way at Old Trafford in Manchester on Wednesday August 21. Watch live on Sky Sports Cricket from 10am (first ball bowled at 11am).
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