England thrash West Indies in closing ODI to safe whitewash after sport was delayed as a result of the guests had been caught in London site visitors

A day that started with England crossing the Thames on Lime bikes changed into a stroll within the park as Harry Brook’s one-day crew accomplished a 3–0 whitewash over West Indies with a dominant seven-wicket win.

With defective site visitors lights at Vauxhall Bridge inflicting gridlock, a dozen England gamers bought off the crew bus after leaving their resort in Kensington and cycled to The Oval as an alternative. The West Indians, travelling down from Chelsea, bought caught in Parliament Sq. altogether, and turned up so late that the scheduled 1pm begin was delayed by half an hour.

They might have wished that they had by no means arrived in any respect, as England’s highly effective batting line-up made mild work of a chase of 246 after heavy rain shortened the match to 40 overs a facet. There have been nonetheless greater than 10 remaining when Jos Buttler pulled Jayden Seales for the successful six.

‘Two hours within the site visitors was very powerful for us,’ mentioned West Indies spinner Gudakesh Motie. ‘We needed to handle that, and after we bought to the bottom we solely had 40 minutes earlier than the beginning and we needed to velocity up our routine.’

England, against this, had the benefit of native information: Buttler has lived in London and advised an answer. As Brook defined: ‘We had been all enjoying playing cards on the again of the bus, then we appeared on the time and realised we needed to get on some bikes. To get a 3–0 victory topped it off fantastically.’

These are early days for the brand new captain’s white-ball reset, and sterner challenges lie forward, however they transfer into the three-match T20 sequence, beginning at Chester-le-Road on Friday, with a long-absent spring of their step. A complete of 400 in Birmingham, a Joe Root-inspired chase of 309 in Cardiff, and now a demolition job in south London: they’ve carried out every thing they may, they usually have carried out it in type.

The win marked an ideal begin to the reign of latest captain Harry Brook (left)

A few of England’s gamers arrived on Lime bikes attributable to site visitors mild issues exterior floor

Solely when Motie and Alzarri Joseph had been thrashing 90 in 11.2 overs for West Indies’ eighth wicket did England threaten to lose management, with their three frontline seamers all erring in size. However the excellence of Adil Rashid, who was on a hat-trick after eradicating Justin Greaves and Roston Chase, had given them respiratory area by lowering the vacationers to 121 for six.

Even with Sherfane Rutherford cracking a run-a-ball 70 – his seventh rating of fifty or extra in his 11 ODI innings – West Indies had been at all times chasing the sport. England’s openers then ensured they by no means caught up, with Jamie Smith hammering 64 in 28 balls on his house floor, together with 58 in boundaries, and Ben Duckett 58 in 46.

Each gamers loved a reprieve: Duckett was dropped on 15 at lengthy leg by Rutherford, and Smith on 44 at midwicket by Greaves. However in between they hit the ball onerous and sometimes: their opening stand of 93 used up simply seven overs and, when Duckett fell within the sixteenth, the overall was already 155. A research in contrasts, Smith and Duckett really feel like an alliance that will endure.

England’s charge of progress eliminated what little sting there was from the competition, although a close to full home nonetheless loved an innings of 44 from Root, who took his sequence haul to 267 runs from 253 balls for twice out. If he can take this type into the Check sequence towards India, his summer time will get higher nonetheless.

With Brook – dropped on 4 by Chase at backward level – nearly a bystander, Buttler hastened victory with 41 off 20 balls, bringing England their first one-day clear sweep for 3 years, and leaving West Indies with out a 50-over victory towards them on this nation since 2007.