Joe Root: Scoring under 200 will not win England matches

England skipper Joe Root

England's lack of top-order runs finally caught up with them during the series loss in the West Indies. A colossal 381-run defeat in the first Test in Barbados was followed by Saturday's 10-wicket thumping in Antigua where England produced yet another 'calypso collapso' display. No one better exemplified the difference than West Indies batsman Darren Bravo, whose 331-minute fifty, spanning 215 balls on a lively Antigua pitch, was the third slowest Test half-century in terms of time.

By contrast, England's second-innings 132 lasted only 38 balls more than it took Bravo to get to 50. Prior to arriving in the Caribbean, the all-rounders repeatedly bailed England out of top-order collapses at home against India and away to SL.

Only once in seven home Tests in 2018, did England reach a total of 400 and not once in Sri Lanka did they make 350. "Scoring under 200 in both innings isn't going to win you many games of cricket," said skipper Joe Root. "I think we have got to be better at what we do, or maybe do things slightly differently. The choice comes down to the individual," he added.

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