England Searching For Next Mr Nasty

Rory Dollard argues England’s lack of bowling firepower is costing them as the Windies attack looks to put Joe Root’s side to the sword once again

- Rory Dollard

I don’t think the surface has much to do with Shannon, he’s just generally quick ya know?” said Jason Holder, assessing the pitch in Antigua and its possible effect on Shannon Gabriel.

The man has a point. When the bull like Trinidadian finds his groove it takes more than a slightly sleepy surface to neutralise his impact. At times it seems like a fully-fastened straitjacket and a square fashioned entirely from semolina would be required to even drag him towards medium-fast classification.

What must Joe Root have been thinking on day four in Bridgetown as he faced down Gabriel’s well-directed stream of blood-curdling bouncers, including the no-ball that thumped into his glove and ballooned to slip.

He would have been forgiven for thinking primarily about the sturdiness of his helmet ahead of what seemed a highly probable collision. More likely he was pondering how he and his bat might fashion a fitting response. But most of all, as England captain, he was probably wondering where he could find a Gabriel of his own.