West Indies fall to heavy defeat in opening ODI against England

West Indies Men’s team are heading to Cardiff for the second ODI against England licking their wounds after suffering a crushing defeat in the opener.

Shai Hope’s men were on the receiving end of a comprehensive battering at Edgbaston in Birmingham and will need to have a serious upturn in performance to have any chance of playing themselves back into the 3-match series.

England totally dominated from start to finish as both sides looked to get their one-day form back on track with one eye on the next World Cup in 2027.

The game in South Wales takes place on Sunday 1 June, before what the West Indies hope will be a decider two days later at the Oval.

World Cup comes into focus

The Edgbaston clash was Harry Brook’s first as England’s new white-ball captain, in a series that could have long-term implications for both sides with regards to the ODI World Cup taking place in South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia in 2027.

Only the top eight teams in the ICC ODI rankings in the March of that year will advance directly to the tournament and at present England sit in eighth, with the West Indies in ninth.

With the unpredictable Bangladeshi’s currently sitting in tenth spot, it means that neither side can really afford to lose the series, taking into account the damage it would do to their already precarious ranking position.

The West Indies missed out last time at the 2023 tournament, so will be desperate to guarantee a top eight slot.

Split loyalties

One player who went into the first match with a few mixed emotions would have been England’s Jacob Bethell, that is because he could quite easily have been the West Indies Jacob Bethell instead.

The immensely talented 21-year-old was actually born in Barbados, so had the option of playing for either nation.

Captain of the West Indies, Shai Hope has been aware of the ability possessed by Bethell for several years now, since first noticing him in an Under-15 game.

“He always looked like a quality player and seeing what he has done, he is certainly a formidable talent and can go a very long way,” before quickly adding with a smile: “I’m happy for him, but we’re enemies this time.”

No containment

Bethell would make a telling contribution, but as he admitted afterwards, his innings was made easy by what had gone before.

Openers Ben Duckett and Jamie Smith – promoted up the order – smashed 64 from the first 7 overs to get the home team off to a flyer. There was little or no control in the bowling and with the hundred coming up in only the 13th over, the signs were already ominous.

Four half-centuries take game away from W Indies

Duckett, Brook and Joe Root each made smart fifties, before Bethell arrived at the crease with 19 overs to go. He took things slowly at first before quickly accelerating and seemed set for a maiden century, before falling in the last over for an impressive 82.

England finished on 400-8 with only a couple of stunning catches by new test captain Roston Chase giving West Indies fans anything to get excited about. Jayden Seales picked up 4 wickets in his 9 overs, but was clobbered for 84 runs.

Comprehensive victory

The target seemed unlikely and quickly became implausible, as the West Indies lost both openers inside the first 4 overs. Wickets continued to tumble at regular intervals, with captain Brook holding onto 5 catches.

Some belligerent striking by last man Seales saw him finish 29 not out and somewhat tellingly end up as the side’s top scorer, as his team folded to 162 all out in the 27th over and falling to a 238 run defeat, in a contest that was about as one-sided as it gets.