It’s another series, another defeat and yet more questions for England after they were beaten by West Indies and their dismal Test form continued.
It’s now one win in their last 17 Tests, and the brief signs of optimism that were on show earlier in the tour of the Caribbean have quickly been overshadowed after a painful Third Test defeat.
There will no doubt be questions on Joe Root’s future as England captain and how the team go about addressing this long-term slump ahead of the summer.
Will Macpherson was in the Caribbean to watch the series unfold and he gives his verdict on the players and their potential futures.
Alex Lees
3 games; 126 runs at 21
Unlike most players, got better as the series wore on. Battled bravely in Barbados and Grenada to prove he has the mindset, but does he have the game? The brutal truth is that some of those who tried and failed before him are probably better players. Still, while he hasn’t made his place safe, has a chance to with Durham in April and May. A little sluggish in the field, and was axed as short leg promptly.
Verdict: Needs a flying start to the season
Zak Crawley
3 games; 184 runs at 30.66.
My, this bloke is frustrating. Strokes to die for, and in his excellent hundred in Antigua, he seemed to be working out when to use them. At that point, it was easy to imagine a path to England’s leadership team, but by Grenada, he was swishing away outside off without little responsibility. It was a series against New Zealand at home last summer that led to him being dropped last summer. Can he prove he is the real deal against them this time?
Verdict: Worth backing – for now
Joe Root
3 games; 289 runs at 48; 1 wicket at 71.
We learnt little that we did not know about Root’s batting. On slow pitches, he is the world’s best batter, but he can be ill-disciplined outside off-stump when the ball does a bit. What of the captaincy? It is time to give someone else a go, because England are in a cycle of failure that even he cannot end.
Verdict: Time to concentrate solely on batting
Dan Lawrence
3 games; 197 runs at 33; 2 wickets at 33
Frustrating. So much promise in the first two Tests with bat, ball, in the field, and as a leader. Then, from nowhere, a scrambled performance in the Third. Can England afford to carry two players as enigmatic as he and Crawley in the same top 6, let alone top 4? The trouble for Lawrence is that his style means his long-term future is probably as a luxury batter at No6, rather than at No4.
Verdict: Baffling, but worth persevering with
Ben Stokes
3 games; 194 runs at 32; 7 wickets at 27
Stokes looked a different man to the one who appeared to be raging against the dying light in Australia. He is fitter, his bowling better, and – in Barbados at least – he shunned the passivity with the bat. Has re-emerged as a captaincy candidate, but it will be asking a huge amount of a man already overburdened.
Verdict: Give him the captaincy and return to No6
Jonny Bairstow
3 games; 226 runs at 45
Bairstow has made a strong return to Test cricket since Christmas (his average is 47 in five matches). A brilliant hundred in Antigua, but a couple of frustrating moments thereafter. Is the only member of this squad going to the IPL, which means he would go into the New Zealand series with no red-ball cricket under his belt.
Verdict: Needs to make strong return count
Ben Foakes
3 games; 96 runs at 19; 8 catches
This series proved there is a little more to the England wicketkeeping debate than Foakes’ ardent supporters – whose expectations do him little good – would have you believe. Batting fell away after scoring 42 on the first day of the series, and his keeping was solid if unspectacular. Dropped a couple of tough chances, and failed to “create” a wicket as he often has in the past. On balance, was outplayed by his opposite number Josh da Silva. Still yet to play a home Test.
Verdict: Deserves a chance at home
Chris Woakes
3 games; 5 wickets at 49; 140 runs at 35
Woakes looks truly deflated, like a man struggling to enjoy his cricket at the end of a long winter of T20 World Cup, Ashes and the Caribbean (only Bairstow is in the same boat). In that context, it was probably unfair to saddle him with the responsibility of replacing Anderson and Broad in this series; a rest would have been kinder. As it is, there is plenty of evidence to conclude that this should be his final Test overseas.
Verdict: Home-track specialist from now on
Craig Overton
2 games; 4 wickets at 47
Ill in the second game, but found things tricky. Bowled nicely without taking wickets, and has won just one of his eight Tests. Needs to prove he has the skills to make the grade, especially with the new ball.
Verdict: Clinging on
Mark Wood
1 game; 1 wicket at 45
Desperately unfortunate to pick up an injury in Antigua. A reminder that, as good as he is, his fitness is not something England can or should bank on. Wood is 32, and won’t be around for ever.
Verdict: Make the most of him
Matt Fisher
1 game; 1 wicket at 71
At short notice, Fisher bowled fine on his Test debut. At 24, is clearly still a long way from being the finished article, but a stint leading Yorkshire’s attack this season will do him good. Seems probable that he will be one of those English seamers who can do a job at home at Test level, but will struggle overseas. If used right, that is fine.
Verdict: His time will come, but not now
Jack Leach
3 games; 11 wickets at 31; 53 runs at 26.5
No Englishman toiled harder than Leach across the first two Tests. Bowled and bowled and bowled, but could not get past the Windies, who barely played a shot in anger. Another who could not back up the progress in the Third Test, in which he batted well but found the pitch even less helpful. Has shown he can keep things tight, which will be vital in the next year.
Verdict: Show Leach some love
Saqib Mahmood
2 games; 6 wickets at 23;
Bowled with pace and occasionally reverse swing, showing an ability with the new and old ball. Also showed bravery with the bat.
Verdict: The sole unqualified success.
Ollie Pope
Unused
After a tough Ashes, England had three choices with Pope: back him in the XI, drop him from the squad, or include him in the squad but not the XI. It feels like they have chosen the worst of the three. If he wasn’t going to play, he should have been left with Surrey to work on his game and hit the ground running at the start of the season.
Verdict: Time away required
Matt Parkinson
Unused
Poor Parky: another stint carrying the drinks. England missed an opportunity to blood him alongside Leach on a lifeless pitch in Barbados. That would have served the dual purpose of giving them a point of difference on an unhelpful surface, while also looking ahead to the tour of Pakistan this year, or even this summer. Instead, we leave none the wiser.
Verdict: A missed opportunity
Ollie Robinson
Unavailable
Robinson has achieved a rare feat over England’s past five Tests: his stock has fallen despite being out of the side. There appears little doubt from England’s management that his poor conditioning is contributing to the injuries that are keeping him out of the side, and he cut a tragic figure while plodding around the outfield as they tried to get him into shape. The call to leave out Anderson and Broad was brave; Robinson’s inability to get on the park made it look stupid.
Verdict: Must do better
