Pride at stake for England as Windies set sights on 3-0

Overview

**Windies v England**3rd Test
Daren Sammy National Cricket Stadium, Gros Islet, St Lucia
Saturday, 9 February; 10:00 local time, 14:00 GMT

The visitors have found it difficult to cope with the intensity of the Windies, who have dominated all departments, and have been particularly exceptional with the ball. Their bowlers have picked up all 40 wickets on offer so far, restricting England to totals below 200 three out of four times.

Kemar Roach has been splendid, and is the top wicket-taker of the series with 13 scalps at 12.07. Roston Chase and Alzarri Joseph have been excellent, with eight and seven wickets respectively. And with their batting going good – almost every batsman has contributed at different points – the home side has provided a visceral thrill.

This time around, however, they have to cope with a major blow – the unavailability of captain Jason Holder, who has been suspended for an over-rate offence. He scored a masterful double-century in Barbados, and has led from the front in crucial moments during the series. Kraigg Brathwaite will stand in as captain, but England will be buoyed.

The visitors, however, have plenty of issues to solve, foremost among them the need for a stable opening partner for Rory Burns. Joe Denly, who replaced the out-of-form Keaton Jennings in the second Test, scored just 6 and 17 in Antigua.

Joe Root, the England captain, has also been unable to bring his best to the fore so far, with scores of 22, 4, 7 and 7. Burns and middle-order batsman Jonny Bairstow have been England's best bets with the bat, but even they have averaged under 30 so far.

Jimmy Anderson and Stuart Broad have carried a bulk of the responsibility with the ball, but will need support from the rest of the line-up in St Lucia. Sam Curran has under-performed so far and will be desperate to improve.

Key players

**Kemar Roach (Windies):**The right-arm seamer has been on fire in the series, crippling England's batsmen with his raw pace. His match-winning performance in the second Test helped him climb eight spots in the MRF Tyres ICC Test Rankings for bowlersand he currently sits at No.12. His contribution with the ball in the final game will be particularly important in Holder's absence.

**Joe Root (England):**Despite poor scores so far, Root remains England's best chance of turning their fortunes around in St Lucia. The captain, who slipped out of the top five in the MRF Tyres ICC Test Rankings for batsmen, will be keen to play a big innings in the final Test and end the series on a high.

Conditions

It is expected to be cloudy in St Lucia at the time of the toss, which might help the fast bowlers early on. Rain is forecast on the third and fourth days.

Squads

**Windies:**Kraigg Brathwaite(c), Darren Bravo, Shamarh Brooks, Shimron Hetmyer, Shai Hope, Shane Dowrich, Keemo Paul, John Campbell, Roston Chase, Shannon Gabriel, Alzarri Joseph, Kemar Roach, Jomel Warrican, Oshane Thomas

England: Joe Root (c), Moeen Ali, James Anderson, Jonny Bairstow, Stuart Broad, Rory Burns, Jos Buttler, Sam Curran, Joe Denly, Ben Stokes, Keaton Jennings, Mark Wood