Jamie Smith fell agonisingly short of a maiden Test hundred as England fought back from a top-order collapse to eye a series clean sweep of the West Indies at Edgbaston on Saturday.
England, in dire straits at 54-5 early on the second day of the third Test, recovered to make 376 in reply to the West Indies’ first-innings 282, with wicketkeeper Smith out for 95.
And at stumps the West Indies were 33-2 in their second innings, still 61 runs behind, with England already 2-0 ahead in a three-match series.
“We didn’t start with the bat the way we wanted to and a lot has been spoken about how good a surface (pitch) it is,” Smith told Sky Sports after stumps.
He added: “Always gutted when you’re five runs away (from a hundred) but I’m pretty proud of the way I’ve played there and there was a lot of risk taken.
“We built some nice partnerships there and to be 54-5 and end up with a healthy lead, we’re happy with that.”
When England lost Ollie Pope and Harry Brook cheaply earlier in the day, a first-innings lead certainly looked unlikely.
But England captains past and present in Joe Root (87) and Ben Stokes (54) turned the tide in a sixth-wicket partnership of 115.
Smith, in only his third Test, then continued to take a toll on the West Indies’ attack as he put on 106 for the eighth wicket with Chris Woakes, who made 62 on his Warwickshire home ground.
All-rounder Woakes then bowled West Indies captain Kraigg Brathwaite for a duck.
And when Kirk McKenzie completed a woeful series with the bat — he managed just 33 runs in six innings — when caught behind off fast bowler Gus Atkinson for 12, the West Indies were 22-2.
But Mikyle Louis, 18 not out, after being dropped on nine by Stokes at mid-off, and Alick Athanaze (five not out) prevented further collapse.
England resumed at 38-3, with the West Indies indebted to Jason Holder (59) and Joshua Da Silva (49) in their first innings.
Root could have been lbw for three to Jayden Seales, with the West Indies opting against reviewing a not out decision from Indian umpire Nitin Menon, although replays indicated the ball would have hit leg stump
But when Root went to 14, it took him past West Indies great Brian Lara’s career tally of 11,953 runs and into seventh place among Test cricket’s all-time leading run-scorers.
Stokes became Alzarri Joseph’s 100th Test wicket soon after lunch when a pull just behind square was caught two-handed by a leaping Brathwaite.
– Fast-scoring Smith –
New batsman Smith luckily top-edged a pull off Joseph only to pull the bowler’s next ball for a soaring six.
Smith was equally severe on Gudakesh Motie, cleverly square-cutting the left-arm spinner behind point for four before sweeping the bowler for two more boundaries.
It was Motie, however, who had Root — in sight of equalling the England record of 33 Test centuries held by the retired Alastair Cook — plumb lbw.
West Indies’ quicks continued to pitch short with a deep-set field, allowing Smith and Woakes to groove their pull shots with a succession of boundaries.
The 24-year-old Smith, who marked his Test debut with 70 in England’s series-opening win at Lord’s had been chosen ahead of fellow Surrey wicketkeeper Ben Foakes in part because of his ability to maintain a high run-rate.
He again proved the selectors’ point by pulling Alzarri Joseph in front of square and thrashing him past mid-on for commanding fours.
Smith went into the 90s with a superb driven legside boundary off Shamar Joseph.
But in sight of a century, he was bowled by a Shamar Joseph delivery that kept desperately low to end a 109-ball innings including 12 fours and a six.
Woakes became the fourth England batsman to make a fifty on Saturday, with tailender Atkinson hooking Alzarri Joseph for two successive sixes before he was last man out.
Alzarri Joseph finished with expensive figures of 4-122 in 17.4 overs.
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