England 's batting line-up was slammed as "fragile" by Michael Vaughan after just one member of their top seven reached double figures in an all-too familiar collapse against the West Indies in Grenada.
On a surface which offered some assistance to the seamers for the first time this series, England wilted in the face of some excellent bowling from the hosts. After safely negotiating the first ten overs, England lost seven wickets for just 44 runs as their top order crumbled, before a small resurgence from their last-wicket partnership.
The West Indies won the toss and captain Kraigg Brathwaite opted to bowl first in a bid to take advantage of some favourable bowling conditions. "It is just the moisture around and there is a decent layer of grass so it is key to utilise it," he said.
And Brathwaite could not have wished for a much better start from his bowlers as they ran through England's top order to take seven wickets for just 44 runs. Seamers Kemar Roach, Jayden Seales, Jason Holder, Kyle Mayers and Alzarri Joseph were all outstanding for the hosts as they exposed England's frailties against the moving ball.
Of England's frontline batters, only Alex Lees was able to reach double figures as he scored 31. In fact, it was the first time since the 1950-51 Ashes tour that England's numbers two through seven were out for single figures.
Both Joe Root and Jonny Bairstow were out for nought, with vice-captain Ben Stokes managing just two. Zak Crawley and Ben Foakes scored seven before they were out, while Dan Lawrence made just eight. However, Jack Leach and Saqib Mahmood did their utmost to keep England in the game, sharing a crucial last-wicket partnership that added over 50 runs.
"West Indies have bowled well, but England's batting is so fragile," Vaughan told BT Sport. "The techniques and mindsets we see from the players you are not surprised to see this happening when the ball is moving around.
"You need a bit of luck on this pitch with the ball moving around, but you also need to leave the ball better with a strong technique and capitalise on anything loose. This was just like the Ashes when the ball was moving around they chased it and that's why England are eight wickets down."
Reacting to England's latest collapse on Twitter, @peggyplatts:"This is worse than the ashes". @BoroSkippy added: "And in less than a day a series is lost against a pretty average opponent. Embarrassing and pathetic."
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