AI Simulation, ENG vs WI | England ride on Joe Root century to complete 3-0 whitewash

‌Pitch & Weather

A sunny London afternoon greeted both sides, with The Oval offering a true pitch for batting early on. There was some grip for spinners as the day progressed and the pitch dried up. There were no rain threats as well with mild cross breezes during the match posing a challenge to the players.

Toss & Conditions

England won the toss and elected to bat first.

Lineups

England: Jamie Smith, Ben Duckett, Joe Root, Harry Brook (c), Jos Buttler, Jacob Bethell, Will Jacks, Brydon Carse, Adil Rashid, Matthew Potts, Saqib Mahmood

West Indies: Brandon King, Evin Lewis, Keacy Carty, Shai Hope (c & wk), Shimron Hetmyer, Justin Greaves, Matthew Forde, Roston Chase, Gudakesh Motie, Alzarri Joseph, Jayden Seales

Match Report

England claimed a 34-run win over West Indies in the third ODI to complete a 3-0 whitewash over the opponents in London on Tuesday. A brilliant 109 from 104 balls from Joe Root, his second-consecutive century helped the home side to 312/8 in 50 overs while Saqib Mahmood and Adil Rashid came up with a disciplined bowling effort, picking up three wickets each, to restrict West Indies to 278 in their chase.

After opting to bat first on a good surface, England’s top order laid the foundation. While Jamie Smith and Duckett provided a solid start, it was Joe Root who orchestrated the innings during the middle phase. He blended timing with control, scoring 11 fours and two sixes, to hold one end up and prevent a batting collapse. He had valuable partnerships with Ben Duckett (42 off 39 balls), first, and then with captain Harry Brook to help the side to a huge total. Brook added flair with a fluent 61 in 51 balls, a knock that included seven fours and two sixes, accelerating during the middle overs with clever use of the crease. With Jacob Bethell and Will Jacks scoring enterprising cameos, England went past the 300-run mark while Alzarri Joseph came up with another impressive spell of pace bowling picking up 3/47 for the Windies.

Chasing 313, West Indies started cautiously as they lost Evin Lewis early in the innings. Brandon King and last-match centurion Keacy Carty steadied the visitors’ innings but the run rate hovered just above six. Carty looked assured during his 65, scoring eight boundaries during his 74-ball stay, while Shai Hope’s attacking intent brought life to the chase after King departed two runs short of his fifty. The Carty-Hope partnership, who completed their individual half-centuries, proved the last straw as the Windies collapsed during a crucial phase of the chase. With Shimron Hetmyer’s bad patch continuing there was no way back for the visitors as the lower order surrendered without a fight. Their innings folded in the 48th over with Saqib Mahmood registering figures of 3/36 in nine overs and Rashid finishing with 3/59 in 10 overs. Pacer Matthew Potts also chipped in for the home side picking up two wickets in the death.

Player of the Match

Joe Root was declared the Player of the Match for his second hundred in two matches. His composed and match-defining knock of 109 off 104 balls provided the much-needed stability to the England innings early on.

Scorecard