Test Match Special

England v West Indies: Wood rout guides England to series win

Simon Mann is alongside Steven Finn, Phil Tufnell & Carlos Brathwaite on the Edgbaston pitch for reaction to Mark Wood taking 5 wickets and England completing the series clean sweep as captain Ben Stokes hits England’s fastest ever test half century.

Hear from player of the match Mark Wood who was disappointed with his individual lack of results despite good performances across the series. Ben Stokes is pleased with England’s newcomers Gus Atkinson and Jamie Smith, with Atkinson saying it’s “the stuff of dreams” taking 22 wickets and being awarded player of the series. England head coach Brendon McCullum calls England’s perceived ‘Bazball’ batting style change as “natural progression” and West Indies captain Kraigg Brathwaite rues the missed chances his side had to limit England’s batting order.

Andy Zaltzman breaks down the series with stats, and hear the lighter moments of the series from the TMS commentary box.

Duration:: 41m
Broadcast on:: 28 Jul 2024
Audio Format:: mp3

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That's rated H for hungry audiences, offer valid for a limited-time, minimum $10 per order, excludes restaurants, additional terms, and fee supply. You're listening to the TMS podcast from BBC Radio 5 Live. Hello, I'm Simon Mann. Welcome to the Test Match Special podcast from Edgebuston, where a post-lunch blast from Mark Wood helps seal a three-nil series win for England. Round of a guitar with the last ball, pitched up Edge and caught, and that's the end of the innings, and that's five for Mark Wood. In the game, short, pulled away, and there it is. England have won, and it's gone for six in the Grand Manor. Stokes seals victory for England. To come, we'll hear from the captain Ben Stokes and Craig Brathwaite, as well as player of the match Mark Wood and player of the series, Gus Atkinson. We'll also have analysis of the day's play from Stephen Finn, Phil Toughnell, and Carlos Brathwaite. You're listening to the TMS podcast from BBC Radio 5 Live. So, England have won this match by 10 wickets before tea on the third day. Another hammering, really. Mark Wood blew Westiners away in the afternoon with five for 40. He took five for nine in 6-0, was finally getting some reward after a series in which he bolds superbly, but didn't take that many wickets. And then with Zach Crawley out of action. Ben Stokes opened the innings, and would you know it? He made the fastest half-century ever by an England batter. In men's career, 24 balls. He was 57, not out at the end from 28 balls. England winning in 7.2 over 87 for no weekend. Another remarkable day's play in front of a big house at Edgerton. And it's probably why they keep coming along because this England side is exciting to watch Steve Finn alongside me. We'll be getting all the reaction. Shortly. Well, what about that afternoon? That lunchtime, Westiners battled it out in the first session, lost three wickets. They were just about in the game, but then over before tea. Yeah, I feel like I need a glass of water or something or a wet towel. I don't know, it's been a very fast-forward afternoon of cricket. I mean, that fast bowling by Wood was exhilarating. I was sat, or we were all sat, directly behind the bowler's arm. And you couldn't take your eyes off it and felt like he was going to take a wicket every single delivery, reverse swing, control, hostility. It really was beautiful bowling. And then, yeah, that was just brutal from Ben Stokes. You felt as though the West Indies coming into the day certainly may have had half an eye on that plane home. I think when they got out there with the ball in hand, they were pretty much all on the plane there, which is natural. It does happen at that stage of a series when the other team have been so dominant. And when you've actually thrown away the position that they were in at the beginning of yesterday when they had England 54 for 5 and felt as though they might take a lead. So all of those things combined led to a very dominant display by England. I thought that, yeah, it's been exactly the tonic they needed after that hammering in India that they ended up receiving after competing for half of that series. So, yeah, a job well done in this first series of the summer. How does that start to happen for a fast bowl though? Mark Wood, he bolts so well in the series. Nothing goes right for him. There's suddenly bang, bang, bang, bang. Well, you have to retain the hope that you can just hang in there. And that's part of the challenge of fast bowling is coming back to the well and keeping going again and again when you feel as though things might be against you or you feel like you're not quite ticking, you have to stand there at the back of your mark 30 meters away and be prepared to attempt to bowl with the same vigor that you have done previously. And Mark Wood, you could see him hanging in there and you just sensed when he started getting that ball to tail back in towards Josh De Silva at the beginning of the afternoon session that if he were to find the right line and length that he could just blow through that West Indies tail and that ended up being exactly what transpired. It was masterful, fast bowling, five for 40, no doubt, a battle will win man of the match, but yeah, it was brilliant bowling. Oh, Finney, come on, come on. You've got to let it go. Oh, never, never. Well, I'm just, I think, who would play the match? Well, we will find out fairly soon. Yeah, lots of, I think it's been an all-round team effort this season, lots of players have contributed. And you think of the players England have brought in, Gus Atkinson and Jamie Smith. They've had excellent series. Brilliant, yeah. There are two guys that when you've watched them play in domestic cricket, actually, you have felt as though they're going to be well equipped to deal with international cricket. And by that, I mean, Jamie Smith has a very simple technique, but he has the power and the ability to be able to go up and down the gears. And then Gus Atkinson, even though he's not set the world like in domestic cricket, this year so far, you watch him bowl spells and you think that's test match bowling, a simplicity of the way that he approaches the crease. There's not much that can go wrong with his action. He looks as though he can go pole hunting if he needs to with his pace and his ability to move the ball, but he doesn't bowl that many bad balls as well. And he has that pace and bounce that troubles the best players in the world. So, yeah, they're two people who they're going to face stern a test in this West Indies team. I think it's fair to be said and that's not being disrespectful. I think they were under cook coming into this series and clearly not the acumen with the bat in particular to be able to trouble this England team over the course of a test match series, but they've both started their international careers very well. And I think they've both got very bright futures. So is it hard to assess how good this attack is? In terms of England's attack, no, I don't think so. I think when you're watching people bowl you get a sense of whether they're test match bowlers or not. And I think that watching Gus Atkinson, he ended up with 22 wickets in the series, I think across a three match series, which is a remarkable, remarkable achievement. And I'd imagine that he will end up being player of the series. You'd be very disappointed and I would as a former fast bowl if he didn't. But, yeah, you look at people and you think whether they're made for test match cricket. And it's been a nice introduction for them and they both have both acquitted themselves very well. It strikes me as one of the keys. And it's so important is four quick bowlers that Ben Stokes coming back to fitness has made such a difference. Huge difference. And his ability, I'd like him to start bowling spells that are less than eight overs, if I'm being honest, because he's just coming back from a knee injury. But that is his character that we know that he has that doggedness about him where he just wants to have the ball in his hand and work through a spell. But, yeah, he's been being back and bowling well and technically from a fast bowling technical perspective to see that front foot landing and that knee be braced. And him being able to commit to bowling that ball as quick as he can. This was his quickest spell in test cricket for five years. Yep, Henry Miranda with the thumbs up. Nail and my stats today. But, yeah, his quickest spell in test cricket for five years clearly shows that he's over that knee injury and he is such a key component. If England are, and we keep looking forward 18 months to that Ashes series, but if England are to win that Ashes series, him being able to bowl and be effective with the ball is crucial to them doing well in Australia. No interesting thing that happened today. When England started off this morning, thought, well, who's going to bowl at either end? And actually, Ben Stokes surprises as he often does. Mark would at one end, while that seemed reasonably logical, show a Bashir at the other end. Let me bring in Tuffers, an expert on spin bowling. How often would you have bold in these sort of conditions? How often would you have bold the first over there? The captain said, go on, bowl the first over of the day. Well, yeah, I think it's because he looked like he was going to get a wicket every ball against Mikhail Louis. You know, he was getting him groping outside that off stump. Why not throw in the ball, see what was going on. Must admit, it was a little bit surprising because Gossack concerned. And Chris Woke's bowl so beautifully the night before, but why not? Sometimes as a skipper you go where you're gut. You think something might happen or you've seen something or the way a batter plays a certain bowl. And they gave him a good spell, didn't they? I mean, he created chances. England looked like they were going to take a wicket with every ball when they first came out. But it didn't quite happen and then they got the changes on and got the seamers on. So I think that was a good call by Ben Stokes. I've had your cess bash here. It's a slow bowl. He's only 20 years of age. Well, I mean, he's got all the tools, hasn't he? You know, he's six foot five, bowls in the high action. He's great big long fingers and he can wrap around the ball. And he also looks like he's got that sort of spin bowl as attitude. He looks like he likes working out the way batters play. I thought he'd bowl beautifully when he came on this morning and just bold it a little bit wider to the right hand, which is what you want to be doing as the ball as the pitch starts to wear. And the test match sort of goes on. I think that was a perfect line. And he looked really good. I think he's feeling so high. Listen, he's going to have tougher challenges to come, flatter pitches, better players. But I mean, you can only do what's put in front of you and he's done it with a plumb. What did you feel about this West Indies side over the three test matches? I thought they did all right. They sort of splattered into life a couple of occasions, didn't they? And, you know, put together decent passages of play, but test match cricket is all about doing it over a sustained period. And they couldn't do that, could they? You know, they'd get a couple of partnerships or decent spell of bowling. But it's all about can you sustain it session after session, keep coming back session after session. And they just couldn't quite do it. Very inexperienced, but they'll grow from this. Yeah, it's hard. You're being worn down the whole time. And you're up against a good side as well in their own conditions. No, absolutely. I mean, England, fantastic Simon, their own conditions. You know what I mean? They've got the guys. I was delighted with the two debutants as well. I think that they would take so much away from this. Yeah, the West Indies are going to have to go away, go back to the drawing board. They've got a game against South Africa in a week. That's going to be a bit tough as well. You know, fantastic side South Africa have got as well. So, yeah, it's going to be tricky for them, but you just saw signs of them getting better each test match. How much has this been a vindication of England's team changes at the start of this series? Absolutely. I think there's probably not more empathetic way of proving that those changes are the right thing to do. I think Jamie Smith has had a quiet series behind the Stumps, which is what you want. No one has even questioned or talked about his wicked keep and whatsoever, which is a very good sign. And Gus Atkinson is someone who you always felt as though had the ability to be good in test match cricket, and he's proved that. Well, we're getting some reaction. Now, Mark Wood has come over to join us. He's got a big hug from Finney. Mark, I presume you're down because you're a player of the match. I don't know. I haven't been told this all just because you bowled so well today. Yeah, I think so. I was a bit surprised, but yeah, I'm not happy that I've obviously gotten there the match. So, down here to do a few interviews. Well, it eventually came right. It's been right throughout the series, but you haven't heard the rewards. What happened today to change that, do you think? I was in a bit of a bad battle, actually, up there at lunchtime. I was thinking as it's something I'm doing wrong, I'm not quite getting it right. Lance or something, I had a great conversation with Jimmy and a couple of other background staff who were really good, speaking to me and trusting what I'm doing. What did Jimmy say to you? It just said, rather than thinking about the outcome, thinking about more of the... Because the ball was reversing and trying to mix it up with a bit of it in a couple of ways, and actually getting it in the battle and the skill element rather than thinking, "I'm not getting away here, or I'm not doing what I want to do." So, after the lunch break, all I did was try to focus really on running hard again, but also that sort of skill element of moving the ball. I sort of just got in a rhythm of, I guess, that sort of like... It's sort of clicking because I wasn't thinking about, and then I think that first record would give us a lot of confidence really, and then I was able to push on from there. Has it been a frustrating series for you? Yeah, it has, yeah. I think, you know, when my pace, I'm really proud that I managed to keep my pace up. Throughout, I was disappointed that I wasn't getting weight. I mean, when you see high pace, you know, often, especially me, he's a tail ender. If I'm facing high pace, I'm thinking, "I'm not going to last long, yeah." But I couldn't get any weight, so it was frustrating, yeah? And how's the body after two test matches? It's a bit sore now, but the physio team excellent. I mean, Steve Griffin and the physio kept patching me back together. I mean, I didn't think they've got any tape left, so I'm pretty pleased the series has finished now that I'm restock and I'll get some more of a game next time. Well, very well bold, and you got some reward at last. Thank you, Cheers. There we go, that's Mark Wood, who thinks he's the player. He is the player of the match, he is the player of the match, it's just been confirmed. So, yeah, actually, right at the end of the game, and you look at some of the contributors, I think it has been a thing this earlier to finish up, as it has been an all-round performance from this England team, most have contributed. Absolutely, I think they've both well as a unit, I think they've battered well as a unit, and they've sort of dovetailed and fed off each other's success, and that's what good teams do. Yeah, I mean, they're growing into a pretty decent side, this England side, and everyone who comes in, as you say, the two debutants, they just seem to fit in so smoothly, don't they? There's no sort of nerves, they all seem pretty unfazed by it all, and that is the sign of a good dressing room and a team that is looking to really build and build. Well, we're going to get some more reaction now. We're going to talk to Ben Stokes fairly soon, but Brendan McCollum is here. We haven't spoken to you for a while, Brendan, so your reflection's really on the whole series. Look, obviously, I thought it was a really good series. I thought, at times, Western, he's pushed us incredibly hard, and I think with their bowling lineup, it was always a battle when it came to bat in hand, but I thought overall, it was a progression of where we wanted to get to as a team. We were able to bring in a couple of new guys and see them develop on this stage and perform really well, and I think overall, we really contend with how we played and know that we've progressed as a team. You made those changes after the last series, after India. In a way, from the outside, it makes us pretty ruthless. We've got with the Jimmy Anderson, we've got Johnny Basto, left Johnny Basto at the side. Do you feel what you've seen is totally vindicated what you did? Yeah, look, I think when you're running a cricket team, you're always looking to try and nip and tackle on the way, and there's guys who have put their hands up, and I've got the skill sets that we identified as we thought could be successful on the international stage, and there'll be complementary skills to what we had in the side beforehand. I think the guys that have come in, Jamie Smith, has been outstanding behind the stumps, and we've seen the power that he possesses with bat in hand, and he looks a rear talent, and he looks a little bit more relaxed, and 20 old wickets in the series as a dream star, and he's a good pace and good intelligence, and he was always threatening as well, and I think Shah Beshir, to me, is just an absolute gun. I think the way he's able to bowl in the first innings and the subtle variations and challenging lines to do bowls, and then to be able to adjust them to the second innings, he's always posing questions as well. There's no slight on the guys that have been before, that's for sure, but these guys have certainly stood up in the series with international quality players, and it's exciting for the squad. Was there a moment with Jimmy when you saw him take those wickets for Lancashire, and then bowl really well at Lord's where he thought, "Mmm, well, have we made the right decision here?" Yeah, look, I think Jimmy's had an unbelievable career, unbelievable, he knows. What he's been able to achieve over a 20-odd year period of time is quite remarkable, really, and we had a fantastic celebration for him at Lord's, and obviously him now joining the coaching staff, because it's very beneficial for all of us, what he's been able to pass on to some of our young bowlers, and even our more experienced guys in the short space time that he's been here, and has been really vital, and sometimes when you're playing, maybe you don't necessarily, you don't maybe share that information as willingly, because you've got your own performance you've got to worry about. Now he's stepped smoothly into the coaching scene, and the job that he's done for us has been very, very good. It's always tough when you say goodbye to a great, but the stage that he went out on and the way that it unfolded, I think Jimmy's content with it. Do you like the template of this team now, and we've had a bit of evolution, a bit of changes, this feel like, "Okay, let's give this a go now for the foreseeable future." Yeah, look, I think so. I think we wanted to introduce guys that we thought had some high ceilings, and Bashir and Atkinson in particular, and I think we've seen that. We're not the finished article, we know that, but this series has been a step forward for us. Just on the approach, the batting approach in this series, has that changed a bit? Has it been refined? I'm not going to use the dreaded phrase that I know you don't like, but has it just been scaled back a bit? Although you see the team chase 87 in what, 7 overs today, you think, "Well, perhaps not." Yeah, look, I think firstly, you've got to look at this betting group now has been together the best part of 18 months or so, so there's a natural progression, there's an understanding of one another's complementary skills, and there's a growth amongst the guys who are out there with bat in hand. Now, messaging has never been about trying to go helpful either with the bat. It's about trying to go out there and play the game that you know how to play best, and trying to remove as much external noise as you possibly can, allow your talent to come out and be totally clear and present in the moment. So, I think over time, you become more and more comfortable with that, and that's what we've seen from this batting group. And the fact that they were able to complement one another with their certain styles is really impressive, and that's, for me, the most impressive part is that we're starting to see each individual play the game that gives them their greatest chance of success, and that's all you want from a coaching point of view. Well, congratulations on a series win. Thanks very much, Brendan. Thank you. The TMS Podcast from BBC Radio 5 Live. My dad works in B2B marketing. He came by my school for career day and said he was a big row, as man. Then he told everyone how much he loved calculating his return on ad spend. My friends still laughing me to this day. Not everyone gets B2B, but with LinkedIn, you'll be able to reach people who do. Get a $100 credit on your next ad campaign. Go to LinkedIn.com/Results to claim your credit. That's LinkedIn.com/Results. Terms and conditions apply. LinkedIn, the place to be. To be. Hey, it's Danny Pellegrino from Everything Iconic. Ready to upgrade your style game without blowing your budget? Check out Quince. They've got all the good stuff, shirts and polos, active wear, and fine leather goods, all at 50-80% less than other high-end brands. In the best part, they're all about safe, ethical, and responsible manufacturing. Get that luxury vibe without the luxury price tag. Hit up Quince.com/Upgrade for free shipping and 365-day returns on your next order. That's Quince.com/Upgrade. Craig Brathwaite is here as well, West Indies captain. Well, Craig, it's been a tough series. Tough to take. What are your reflections on it? Yeah, it was a tough one for sure. Just go back to, we didn't show a lot of discipline with the ball. We didn't, we looked back at percentages of our groupings coming from the series before this. We dropped a lot. That's one thing that let us down. Obviously, we let them off. We helped a lot of times scoring a bit way too fast. And then batting ways. Obviously, we didn't get second innings runs in the last two test matches. And also, obviously, Kevin got 100 of it. It was great. But we got, including myself, we got about four, five-half centuries. And it could be a big difference if those guys would carry on, including myself. You know, in terms of the total. So, I think both batting ways and ball, they ways we, you know, we just didn't come consistently to the party. You know, throughout the entire test match. And that's something we need to do, you know, to be able to win, win test matches against. Especially against good teams, you know. And on this game, you had England 54 for five. Do you think, well, yeah, this is our great opportunity? Yeah, I mean, that was the belief. Obviously, a little unlucky with the referral. I thought we didn't refer. What was the thought process that just didn't even say? Yeah, I mean, from communication with the boys, I mean, they were saying it's going down. So, I mean, it's pretty hard in those situations, you know, to do different. But yeah, we got to be better. We got to be better with the ball. And, you know, we showed some promise, we did bad as well. And, I mean, the ball we did, we did in between, but not consistently. I think, once we improve on that, we'll be good, we'll win test matches. And you've got a quick turnaround now. You've got another one in the back. What, ten days time, whatever it is? Yeah, I mean, that's good. I like it, because at least we have a chance to participate in two more test matches against a good attack. And that's what it's about. I think once we learn from this, as I said, after the first test, I think, you know, playing these games is a plus for us. So, I really look forward to it. Well, all the best with that. And, well, commiserations on the series. Yeah, thanks. There we go. Craig Brathwaite, the captain of West Indies, and right alongside him is the captain of England, Ben Stokes. Actually, quite a lot to talk about. What should we talk about first? Well, Ben, exactly what he couldn't open the batting. He came out about, what was it, what was it thinking there? I'm going to have a go at this. No, not really. I think it was just, if I went up the order, it kept everyone else sort of the same. You know, obviously everyone in, well, everyone in the changing was sort of the top what about it. I was saying, "Oh, they'll do it." I was like, "No, I'll do it." But, yeah, in the back of my mind, I was like, "Popy, you're either going to not be in or you'll be in pretty early." Yeah, but, yeah, that was the thinking, was just to keep everyone in the same position. And when you walked out, you thought, "Yeah, I am going to go for this." Yeah, that was obviously on the top of mine, and then a couple hit the middle of the bat. I was seeing it quite well, so, yeah, tried to finish it off quite quick. Do you know it was the fastest half-century by an England player in the history of Test cricket? It'd be in both of them's record. Ian both of them's record would be taken. I do know that now. Collie's the record man up in the dressing room. He likes to keep tabs on sort of all the tiny little records that, you know, individuals do. And he told me upstairs, yeah. Well, a nice day for you, but also a nice day for Mark Wood as well, who finally got some reward. Yeah, that was just unbelievable this afternoon. I think that afternoon is the reward that he deserves after, you know, last week, and even in this week, you know, just to see him operating the way that he did there, you know, running in, bowling fast. But not just fast, but with extreme skill, obviously. When your ball is flat as he does and the ball is reverse swinging, it's very, very hard to face. And, you know, that's, there's a sign of why you want to express pace in your team. You know, you can say, oh, it was the back end of the West Indies' back end line up, but that's exactly why he's in the team. You know, when you feel like the game's there to grasp hold of and take control of, you know, you throw on the ball and then he delivers something like that. But yeah, I think that was the reward that he deserved for, you know, a pretty luckless, sort of, six, seven days of test cricket because he kept on meeting the bar. He didn't get the rewards, but I was so glad that he got those five with his head today. How much are you conscious that your bowling, as well, makes such a difference to the Indian side? Because you can play for fast bowlers, you can keep the pressure on. And the corollary customer, that is, you know, how is the body after bowling over in the series? Yeah, it makes a massive difference. I know it's only one more option, but I feel like I've got plenty more. You know, I don't know if it's obvious to see, but I quite like to use in Chezgi. I mean, Woody and Bash together, just because of the contrast, you know, high pace at one end in the skill that Bash has. But yeah, you know, one more option, but I feel like I've got plenty more if that makes sense. So yeah, I know it massively helps the team out in terms of the make-up and the shape of the team, but it's also good for me as an individual as well. And Jamie Smith, I mean, it looks as though you've got some player there. Yeah, well, we knew that. That's why he got selected. But I think, you know, not only with a bat, but I think he's been incredibly tidy behind the stumps without really being noticeable. And that's always a good thing as a keeper, is when you sort of don't stand out that much. But yeah, he's came in, he's done exactly what we've seen in him with the bat in terms of the role, batting down at number seven. You know, those two beginnings that he played were, you know, a great sign of him understanding that role without really having any experience doing it. Yeah, you know, I think the sign of his character is that he was just happy to get 95. You know, a lot of people will be devastating. They didn't get those five runs, but he sees it as no. I've got 95 runs in the test match. How good is that? So he's been phenomenal in his first series, incredibly talented lads, and again, Gus Atkinson, obviously, our man of the series there. You know, great start for the two young lads. That's another sign of his character as well, Jamie Smith, as he wanted to go to his 100 with a six as well. He said that yesterday. Yeah, well, I mean, look, that's, you know, a tiny little thing. You know, it's the unselfishness. Obviously, in a certain situation in the game, and he wasn't thinking about his personal milestone. You know, you know, obviously, every batsman wants to get their first 100, but, you know, he put the team before any personal milestone. So I think that's a great sign of his character that, you know, obviously the team comes first. One very quick questions. I know you've got other duties as well. Is this the template for the team? No, this was unchanged for this game. Does this feel like a settled side now for quite a while? Well, I wouldn't say that. I mean, look, you've got to take every game as it comes. You know, as I've constantly said, fastball and very hard on the bodies. So we've obviously got a nice break now. We've got sort of a few lads might rest the 100 to make sure that they're all good for the series against Sri Lanka. But yeah, look, we just got to take each game as it comes and, you know, but, you know, very happy with the, obviously, the 11 that we fielded, but also the squad that we've got. Well played, Ben. Very well done. Congratulations on your new record. Thank you, cheers. There we are. Ben Stokes, England's captain. Oh, goodness, me played well today. I mean, the best of Ben Stokes to others. Well, I mean, the odds were we're in England's favour, weren't they? And the West Indies won a bit of a hide in the nothing, but he just came out there and freed his mind and just decided to go right. I'm going to entertain the crowd, and that's what he's all about. He always has been, and that's what the segment signs about, isn't it? No putting, knocking it around for ones and twos, just go out there and he just saw it. He said there, you know, he got a couple of way early on and just sort of writing this, haven't it? Carlos is here as well before he goes off to his T10s and his T20s, and I thought he'd have a T5 for you somewhere. Carlos, as well, your assessment of West Indies over the series? I think they got better as the games went on, and you could see at the starting series, there were a lot of remarks about being undercooked, being underprepared, one first-class game. I don't want to go to the first-class game, one-three-day game against what essentially would be a third team. If you're talking about preparation-wise, it wasn't England Lions, it wasn't a county team, it was a made-up team of under-19s. That's a lot of respect to them and they're good players, but if you're preparing for a test series to come up on the face, Mark would 90 odd miles an hour. So not obviously only had one test, I don't think that adequate preparation is won three-day game against the first-class countries that they would have played against. West Indies have to do a little bit of introspection from a planning standpoint. I don't think coming to England with the level of inexperience from a batting standpoint was ideal either, that an experience showed on more than one occasion. They had outside Joseph and Schummerger, they're probably lacking a little bit of miles in elation from a red ball standpoint. Jason Holden no coming back from injury, so although it sounds like a lot of excuses, there are a lot of reasons why West Indies haven't performed as well as they potentially could, but there's a lot of good positive signs. There's a big positive sign walking toward me one. Gus Atkinson, a tremendous starter to test cricket. Yeah, let's have a chat with Gus Atkins, you've got a couple of medals around your neck. This is a series, 22 weeks, new first series, how do you respond to that? I mean it's pretty amazing, I didn't expect much. I mean I came in with an open mind and to take 22 wickets is stuff of dreams. How well do you feel, have you bowled 22 wickets well, if you saw what I mean? I think I've bowled well, I feel like a few things have gone my way over the series, it's just been one of those series where I've just been able to take wickets. I know times will be tougher than that, but yeah, I just look to hit my areas hard and then see what happens. How's test cricket being as you'd expect it? Yeah, I mean physically and mentally it definitely takes it out of you. You know, after lunch at day one at board, I was like, "Jesus, I'm struggling here a bit." You know, just all the people around the occasion, it was very special. But yes, it's been an amazing series, I'm looking forward to the future. I do think actually, once you get over that, you've just been able to feel your way into it. Yeah, 100% I feel really comfortable walking onto the pitch now with bat and ball. So yeah, it's been a, I feel like I've settled in well, obviously spent the winter with the group. So yeah, coming into this series, it's been great. Going forward, do you see yourself potentially as a kind of bowling all-rounder, a couple of sixes into their stamina last night? I mean, it was something to behold. Yeah, 100% I'm always going to look to improve my all-round game. My batting is definitely something that I feel like I can contribute with, but it was good fun there, at the end, just trying to whack it out the ground. So what now, do you have a chance to recuperate for a while, do you feel your body does need some time off? Yeah, I have a week or so off and then placed in 100 games before the Sri Lanka series. So looking forward to having a quick break and then looking forward to the 100 and then looking forward to the next series. Well, very well bold, I mean, memorable, isn't it? Come out and do that in your first series. Yeah, it's incredible. It's something I'll remember for the rest of my career and have my family here and stuff. It's been very special. Brilliant, thanks very much. Gus Atkinson, he's the player of the series. He's taken 22 wickets in the series. Fabulous effort on what an achievement to do that in your first test match series. Absolutely, I just like the way he goes about his business. It just keeps it very simple, goes out in a couple of great sixes with the bat. Very good feel there as well, but just keeps everything simple. I was very impressed on what we all thought was a pretty flat pitch of how much he can see in the ball. He gets that ball to jag back to the right-hander, so he's obviously got the skills, he's got the pace. And that attitude's there. He had a couple of catches dropped off him, just turns around, head down, walks back to his mark, goes and do it again. They're great prospects and he's had a fabulous start at his test career. Carlos, it's been brilliant to have you with us for this series. Yep, the big man, they have some final thoughts. It's been a pleasure to be back on the TMS team, as all this is, part of the BBC family, part of the fabric as well. Yeah, there's a lot of sentiments around West Indies and West Indies cricket. I personally think it's a deeper issue than just West Indies. More were a wide cricket challenge, especially with funding and preparation and formats and planning and all that. But it was good to see West Indies come to England get progressively better and hope that their tree test matches better off when they head back home against South Africa. So, thanks for having me and hopefully we could follow the West Indies travels back home on some better performances. Thanks very much, Carlos. Let's go up to Andy Zoltz for now for a statistical breakdown of the game and the test match as a whole. What have you picked out for a Zoltz? Well, let's start with the end. Ben Stokes is 24-ball half-century, the fastest half-century by an England player in test history, breaking Ian Botham's record from 1981. In 1981 against India, a 28-ball, 50 on that occasion. So Stokes has beaten that by four balls and the joint third fastest 50 by any player in test history. And that late flurry, 87 in just 7.2 overs to win the game. The previous record from most runs within the first eight overs of a test innings was 72. That took England's scoring rate for the series up to 4.73 per over, which is the third fastest ever in a test series of three or more matches. Behind two other series, under Stokes and McCollum, they win at 4.74 in the ashes last summer and 5.5 in over in Pakistan in the 2022-23 winter. So total dominance for England. They averaged 42 runs per wicket with the bat, 22 runs per wicket with the ball. Joe Root had a fine series since he was out to bum roll with that reverse scoop in Rajkot. Since that test match, five tests scored at least a 50 in each of those five tests in all over 500 runs, average 76. Strike rate is interesting, 57 per 100 balls. Prior to that, since Stokes took over, he'd been going at 74 per 100 balls, still doing well, averaging around about 50. But with sort of inconsistencies within that, and he's been hitting a boundary of 18 balls since that Rajkot test compared with one of the 12 balls under Baz Ball before that. So if we are seeing a bit of a moderation of England's approach, we see that I think most in the most pronounced manner in the batting of Joe Root has been hugely successful. This series, one of the victims, well the prime victim of England's attacking approach, Alsari Joseph, when it's 6.1 per over across the series, only the second time in test history that a bowl has bold 50 or more overs in a series and gone up more than a runner ball and the Pakistan Lexbin and Zahid Mahmood in that series, 18 months ago, was the other one at nearly seven and over there. Mark Wood, spectacular spell, five for seven and 21 balls to end the series, been luckless prior to that, four wickets and over 54 overs and then suddenly five in 21. And his speed through the series is averaged over 90 miles an hour on the crypto's database, the third fastest recorded series by a bowler, who's played in two or more tests in the series behind two by Mitchell Stark in Australia. Five or six, five or six years ago and he took five wickets in a single spell for the first time in his career. Show a bashir did that at Trent Bridge and Gus Atkinson had a five wickets single spell at Lords England had only had one five wickets spell since February 2021 so yet more magic from Stokes and the England selectors, Gus Atkinson, 22 wickets in his first three tests, only three England bowlers have ever taken more wickets in their first three tests, and you've got to go back a long way for any of them. Fred Truman, who debuted in 1952, Alec Bedsa debuted in 1946, both took 24 in their first three tests then Tom Richardson in the 1890s, 23 in his first three tests and that's an illustrious and old list that Gus Atkinson has added himself to. So a lot of numbers, this series of typically fast action cricket that we've seen. Yeah, another stats bonanza, anyway, that's buzzball for you, isn't it, or whatever it is, or whisper that word, I'm not supposed to say it, but there we go, thanks very much salts. Now before we go, let's have a listen back to some of the lighter moments of this test match from inside the TMS commentary box. Collect managed to persuade John Holder that actually, if there was a line of heavily bearded slickfielders there in a cordon, if they actually weaved their beards together, and the ball went into it and was caught, the batson would be out. Who gets credited with the catch? Well, this is a very good point. When did the high five first come into cricket? I don't have that in my database. Check correctly. I just think, Victor, do you have a high five, anybody Victor? Just the right letters, didn't you, back in the day? Yeah, got the next more in this year, mostly with a letter, the old ball in a 14-core run, and the 16-core run. I can do that catch, first look. Slow Mexican wave, that one, isn't it, not quite as quick on the uptake. I think the average speed for a Mexican wave is 27 miles per hour, genuinely I think it is. What are you looking at me like? Because you've just made it up. No, no, I've read too much. How do you know that? I can confirm the 27-mile-an-hour average speed of Mexican waves, according to a piece of research at the University of Budapest in 2022. That's our 20, a 2002, that's quite a while ago. So I don't know if they've sped up. So there are cricket maps instead. Well, if we're going by cricket evolution, they must have slowed down, but remember, way quicker. It's not here to witness, it's selling sheep, I think, this week. It's sheep selling week. Oh, is it? Beyond the farm, yeah. Big in the calendar, that is. Yeah. Do you have a little bit of trepidation about this hour, Carlos? Oh yeah, no, I look at a lot. Carlos is with me as well, Carlos Brathings. I'm having a quick chat with Alsari Joseph. Any state secrets there, Carlos? Yeah, it's order to stop boiling crap. No. So that's it for this episode of the TMS podcast. Make sure you subscribe on BBC Science so you don't miss any content as we continue through the cricketing summer. On the BBC iPlayer right now, you can check out James Anderson, king of swing. It's in the sports section of the iPlayer and the legends of sport. Test match special is back for England's three test series at Sri Lanka on 21st of August, but in the meantime, the 100 coverage continues across BBC television, five sports extra, BBC Science and BBC Sport website and app. On Monday, Manchester Originals take on Trent Rockets. The women's game starts at 3 o'clock and the men's game starts at 6.35 in the evening. 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