England eliminated the CIT President’s XI by 264 on day three of the warm-up outing in Antigua on a slow surface, but by then the concerns lay elsewhere; Robinson took the first wicket of the day, but stopped midway through the fourth with a sore back; Wood still to play because he is not feeling well
Fitness scares from Ollie Robinson and Mark Wood have left England with an unwanted headache ahead of next week’s first test against the West Indies, with the shadows of James Anderson and Stuart Broad looming.
In score terms, things were relatively serene on the third day of their warm-up outing in Antigua, with the CIT President’s XI on a slow surface, but by then the concerns were elsewhere.
With his two main wicket-takers controversially sacked for this trip, and a bubbling backlash among his supporters, seeing two of his first-choice bowlers unable to enter the pitch was the last thing tourists needed.
Robinson took the first wicket of the day, but stopped midway through his quarter with a sore back and was not seen again. For a player who walked off the field for treatment on several occasions at the Ashes and saw his physical condition publicly questioned by team management, it was a particularly uncomfortable turn of events.
Wood excelled in a losing effort but has yet to play any role in this match as he has been feeling unwell for the last 48 hours. He made a belated and brief visit to the Coolidge Cricket Ground before returning to the team hotel to rest.
England are understood not to suspect Covid-19 and although they hope he will recover soon, their preparations for the first game of the series have already been damaged.
In his absence, the uncapped pair of Saqib Mahmood and Matt Fisher were drafted into the game, but while both held their own easily, neither made a strong case for inclusion.
Indeed, on a slow release that offered minimal encouragement, none of England’s remaining in-form closers were able to make a breakthrough at 44.4 overs between them. Instead, it was a more profitable outlet for the spins contingent.
Jack Leach led the way with four for 62, Dan Lawrence bagged a couple of unexpected wickets with his part-times and skipper Joe Root picked one up as well. As a guide to the Test series, it all fell pretty flat, with attention shifting to those who were injured, ill or upset at home in England rather than those who were busy establishing a 202-run lead in the first innings.
Leach’s efforts were enough to dispel any thoughts of shutting him out at Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in favor of an all-out attack, but the ankle-high shooter who caught Centurion Raymon Reifer lbw was a reminder that the field was not exactly Test. standard.
Reifer’s 106, and the inability of Chris Woakes, Craig Overton or the newer duo of Mahmood and Fisher to take him out, will remain a minor flaw for England.
As England’s second innings began, newcomer Alex Lees was unable to repeat his strong first impression, following his first day of 65 by beating Preston McSween to lose 10.
He was replaced by Ben Stokes, raising the order after lacking time at the crease in his previous innings, but was undone by a questionable lbw verdict which meant he went for 19.
That left him the only member of the top six not to be at least half a century ahead of the series, but England won’t be too worried about their vice-captain.
The last act of the day saw Zak Crawley lbw down 35 on a low rebound, with England 279 ahead at 77-3.
“Ollie has a back spasm, it’s not ideal. It’s hard to tell at the moment, but when someone walks away like that, it doesn’t look good,” England caretaker manager Paul Collingwood said. sky sports then.
“These kinds of spasms can heal as quickly as they appear. We’ll just have to assess it. I certainly don’t think Ollie will be bowling on day four, that would be too much of a risk.”
“As a bowler, you get injured. It’s something we’re always aware of with Ollie and he knows it, but he’s working hard, as hard as anyone else, and it’s unfortunate when something like that happens.”
“Test cricket is very different to playing a four-day county match. Sometimes we expect these guys to come from county cricket and be the finished article. They certainly aren’t, skill-wise or physically.
“I’m sure he understands his county cricket body quite well, but we can’t take any chances with him and push him too far too soon.”
As for Wood, the picture looks brighter.
“Mark had preventive blood tests done today, but I’m hoping to get two or three episodes out of him,” Collingwood added.
“His loads have been good in training and I can’t add any more days on the schedule so hopefully that’s enough. It’s definitely not Covid related, it’s a disease that has developed. But he’s looking positive at the moment.”
