England pile on runs again

12 April 2012

Hundreds from Paul Collingwood and Matt Prior set up England's victory hunt in the final Test against West Indies.

Collingwood hit 161 and wicketkeeper Prior a Test-best unbeaten 131 to leave West Indies requiring 347 to avoid the follow-on at Queen's Park Oval but - given the dominance of bat over ball both here and in the past couple of matches - it appears set fair for a real slog to retain realistic thoughts of enforcing it.

West Indies closed on 92 for one following a typically aggressive launch out of the blocks from captain Chris Gayle (49 not out).

Captain Andrew Strauss, the first of England's three centurions, gave his five-man attack 19 overs at their opponents but they conjured only one breakthrough on another lifeless surface.

Recalled left-arm spinner Monty Panesar, who has been working on his variations here with coach Mushtaq Ahmed, provided it in his first over with a delivery that outfoxed Devon Smith.

Rather than turn into the batsman with the angle from over the wicket, the ball held its line, beat the outside edge and clipped the off-stump.

Perhaps excitable given their position in the series, and the need for early wickets, the tourists wasted the first of their two umpire review challenges as early as the third over when contesting a leg-before appeal against left-hander Smith in James Anderson's third over, which clearly pitched outside leg-stump.

Debutant Amjad Khan was unleashed for the ninth over of the innings and located the edge of Gayle's bat with his first genuine delivery, following two no-balls, but the lack of carry in the pitch resulted in it falling short of first slip.

And England lost their right of referrals inside a dozen overs when off-spinner Graeme Swann defeated Chris Gayle in the flight to strike the pad in front of middle-stump.

Replays vindicated Russell Tiffin's original decision to turn down the shout, however, with the ball running on past leg stump, which altered the mood of a fielding side who believed they had their man.

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