137-year first proves England cricket is a laughing stock

England cricket’s reset isn’t exactly going to plan, with Joe Root and his teammates crumbling to a record new low in the West Indies.

England cricket’s reset isn’t exactly going to plan.

Joe Root’s men were saved by a miraculous 10th-wicket partnership in Grenada on Thursday, with tailenders Jack Leach and Saqib Mahmood combining for a 90-run partnership to help the visitors register a competitive total of 204 against the West Indies.

With the series locked at 0-0 ahead of the third and final Test in St George’s, West Indies captain Kraigg Brathwaite won the toss and elected to bowl first, a decision that quickly paid dividends.

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England’s top-order crumbled to 7/67, with only one player in the side’s top seven reaching double figures — opener Alex Lees with 31.

Jonny Bairstow and Root both registered ducks, while all-rounder Ben Stokes could only manage 2.

Root has now equalled Michael Atherton’s record tally of Test ducks as England captain with eight.

England was reeling at 9/114 when No. 11 Mahmood waltzed to the crease for his maiden Test knock.

As he walked out to the middle, a handful of England teammates emerged from the sheds in their cricket whites, preparing for an imminent fielding duty.

“We did spot that,” Mahmood said at stumps. “I did say it to Leachy, ‘The cheeky f****** have got their whites on’. It did spur us on a little bit.

“I had a glance over later to see if some had taken them off but they left the whites on throughout. It was good fun out there with Leachy, it was a case of being disciplined out there and hitting the bad ball. We knew they’d get to a stage where the sting was taken out of their attack.

“It could have easily fallen into pieces after the start we had in the first two sessions but we stuck at it well.”

But Mahmood and Leach then frustrated the West Indies by surviving 36.2 overs together, combining for England’s largest partnership of the day.

It was the first time since 1885 that the No. 10 and No. 11 batters had posted the two highest scores of a Test innings.

Jack Leach and Saqib Mahmood. Photo by Gareth Copley/Getty Images

“Once I got in it was good fun,” Mahmood said.

“It was quite hard work to start with, but we knew if we stuck in there they would have to turn to part-time bowlers before the new ball and that’s when we could cash in a little bit.

“We were pretty set when that new ball came along. Our partnership was crucial because it just wore them into the ground a little bit.”

Mahmood was dismissed on what was ultimately the final delivery of the day, chopping a half-tracker from part-time tweaker Jermaine Blackwood back onto the stumps for 49, his highest score in first-class cricket.

Leach remained unbeaten on 41, his second-highest score in Test cricket.

Young quick Jayden Seales was the chief destroyer with the ball, finishing with figures of 3/40 from 17 overs.

“It was definitely frustrating. We were looking at getting them out for 150 at most and I think we let them off the hook,” Seales said at stumps.

“On this wicket, that is actually a decent score. I think later in the game, it might go up and down with variable bounce. It’s game on.”

England’s batting was woeful throughout the recent one-sided Ashes series, and there’s seemingly still plenty of room for improvement.

The England Test side, currently ranked last on the ICC World Test Championship table, has won just one of its 16 most recent Test matches, with uncertainty still surrounding the formation of its top six.

The third Test between the West Indies and England will resume on Saturday AEDT, with the first ball of day two scheduled for 1am AEDT.