West Indies hold upper hand after first day of second test

West Indies’ surprising dominance of England continued on the opening day of the second Test with the home side’s fast bowlers bundling out the visitors for 187 at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in Antigua on Thursday.

Already 1-0 up in the three-match series, the Caribbean team’s openers negotiated 21 testing overs to the close and the pair of Kraigg Brathwaite and John Campbell will resume on the second morning at 30 without loss in reply.

Thrashed by the comprehensive margin of 381 runs in the first Test in Barbados less than a week earlier, England again struggled to cope with the combined assault of the home side’s pacers.

As in the first innings of the first Test when they were routed for just 77, Kemar Roach again led the assault with four wickets.

Moeen Ali and Jonny Bairstow struck contrasting half-centuries to avert a complete and abject capitulation again by the pre-series favourites whose captain suffered most from the vagaries of an uneven surface.