It was the kind of lower-order demolition job once associated with West Indies, but on a heady third day at Edgbaston the tourists were the ones on the receiving end. Roared on by a capacity crowd after lunch, Mark Wood unleashed a truly electric burst of fast-twitch reverse swing that secured a 3-0 series clean sweep for England.
Not even Ben Stokes promoting himself to opener and crashing the fastest half-century by an Englishman – 24 balls, beating Ian Botham’s long-held record by four – could knock Wood off the top of the podium after this 10-wicket win. Stokes was murderous, no question, a target of 82 vaporised in about 40 minutes. But Wood, luckless in Nottingham last week despite bowling like the speed of light, was the catalyst here.
