Spin bowling coach Jeetan Patel felt England paid a heavy price for their only two mistakes on a tough third day at the Kensington Oval.
England toiled away for 90 overs in Barbados but managed only three wickets as centuries from Kraigg Brathwaite and Jermaine Blackwood stiffened West Indian resolve. They will resume on 288 for four, with a deficit of 219 on the books but Brathwaite ready to resume his rearguard on 109 not out.
Things began positively for the tourists as Jack Leach cashed in on a loose shot from Shamarh Brooks and Ben Stokes picked up Nkrumah Bonner for a disputed lbw decision in the morning session.
Stokes should have had Blackwood for a duck too, but he refused to review his own appeal when DRS would have upheld the shout. That was the first of England’s errors.
The second came when Saqib Mahmood bowled Blackwood for 65 with a handsome yorker, only for his first Test wicket to be scrubbed from the board due to a front-foot no-ball.
Dan Lawrence’s occasional, and unusual, spin ensured the Jamaican did not survive until stumps but a 183-run stand had already done some lasting damage.
We did a lot of good stuff and hopefully we come back with the same attitude and effort
“You look at those moments and we made two mistakes today,” said Patel. “We didn’t review an lbw that was probably out and then there was the no-ball.
“But if we only make two mistakes a day, we’re going alright. No one wants those stories. It’s not great for Saqib but I’m sure he’ll learn his lesson going forward.
“We did a lot of good stuff and hopefully we come back with the same attitude and effort.”
While the chances of a second-successive draw rose considerably over the course the third day, Patel saw glimmers of optimism and believes there are small signs that the benign conditions are changing.
“I still think there’s a chance, everyone saw it was moving around at times out there,” he said.
“There a bit of up and down bounce, a bit of spin, a bit of reverse – I think there’s a huge opportunity to take this game forward. I wouldn’t say it’s spinning anymore, but it is drying on top.”
Blackwood continued his happy knack of defying England, against whom he now averages 45.77 against a career mark of 30.66. This was also his second hundred against Joe Root’s side, with just one other in his remaining 34 appearances.
He shared a few words in the middle with the firebrand Stokes, with umpire Joel Wilson at one stage intervening and attempting to take the heat out of the exchanges.
Wearing a broad smile at the close of play, he said: “For a long time Ben Stokes has liked to come at me. It’s a little bit of banter, I love it.
“I think that’s good for the cricket. I don’t have a problem with it and it boosts my confidence as well, whenever I hear someone talking and coming at me. That gets me on to stay more focused, so I’m really glad he did that.”
