England score early victory

CRICKET FIRST TEST: ENGLAND WON the first Test comfortably enough yesterday by 10 wickets, and well inside three days. If some splendid resistance from Brendan Nash and Denesh Ramdin in the afternoon held them up, then the remaining batting crumbled against pace and spin alike.

With West Indies all out for 256, England were left just 32 to take a lead in the series, which Andrew Strauss and Alastair Cook knocked off inside seven overs.

So perhaps for the first time where weather has not intervened, there will be no play on the weekend of a Lord's Test. Ticket holders will get their money back but on the whole they would rather have seen some cricket. The Wednesday start, a necessity once the second Test was scheduled to begin next Thursday (three days minimum has to be pencilled in between back-to-back matches) is looking like bad judgment.

England are now on the way to regaining the Wisden Trophy they relinquished in the Caribbean less than two months ago, which however well they play to do so would seem unfair to West Indies. The winter series was hard fought over four Tests, and to have to hand it back after two games in zippy spring conditions in a contest that is only on because West Indies are bailing the England and Wales Cricket Board out, is an injustice.

Next week's game, however, will provide the England selectors with some cause for discussion. What to do? In what might be assumed to be seamer-friendly conditions at the Riverside in Chester-le-Street, should they stick with the team that has just played the opposition off the park? Or should they reassess the role, say, of Tim Bresnan - who until he plunged to take a catch in the gully late on (which rattled the tea cups) had contributed nine runs and seven innocuous overs - with the addition of another batsman?

With a lead in the series, that would make sense. But who then to pick? It is too early for Ian Bell to return and there is no obvious candidate from the shires to go in at number six. Perhaps they need to think who they might require should injury strike during the week and go from there.

The filthy nature of the weather meant a start delayed until midday, but the prospect of a pitch juiced up. Survival for West Indies promised to be no easier than it had been on the second day when they were tormented by Graham Onions. It took more than half an hour, though, and the reintroduction of Onions to make further inroads, a result of shrewd field placing by Strauss in posting Cook in a semi-catching position behind square on the leg side.

Lendl Simmons' clip found the fielder unerringly. When Graeme Swann, who had dismissed Shivnarine Chanderpaul first ball on Thursday, forced a catch to silly point from his fifth second time around, and when Onions, in his next over removed the middle stump of Devon Smith with a fine inswinger, the deficit was still 146 and an innings defeat by mid-afternoon a probability.

Then the sun came out, making batting easier. Nash and Ramdin took advantage by compiling 143 for the sixth wicket, the only century stand of the match, which took West Indies into credit, none of which should have confounded England.

Nash showed himself to be a feisty batsman in the Caribbean, he bats with determination, using a restricted method which relies on a whirling cut, punchy cover drive and selective nudging

Ramdin made a century in Barbados during West Indies' mammoth innings, and here drove strongly, reaching 61, with 13 fours, before Stuart Broad trimmed his off bail with a ball that jagged back down the slope.

It was testing delivery with which to break through but for the duration of the partnership the bowling, in easier batting conditions, had looked less threatening. Onions saw the other side of the Test match coin by disappearing for 40 runs from five overs. For a while during their stand England's cricket lost its intensity.

Swann had missed a difficult chance at third slip before Nash had scored and now Onions fluffed a return catch offered by Ramdin the ball after the century partnership had been posted. Matt Prior allowed a straightforward delivery to elude his gloves and career for four byes. It was scruffy stuff.

Ramdin's dismissal brought a flurry of wickets, two of them to Swann, who enjoyed a rollicking match with bat, ball and, that miss apart, in the field and one to Broad thanks to Bresnan's catch. It left Nash with the challenge of making 24 more runs to reach a century with the last man at the crease and he managed just five before uppercutting a high catch to Cook at wide third man to which he clung worthily.

Guardian Service