Twin centuries from West Indies pair Kraigg Brathwaite and Shai Hope left England toiling for answers on day two at Headingley, just a week after the tourists were roundly written off.
Brathwaite made a diligent 134 and Hope followed with a maiden three-figure Test score of 147 not out, sharing a fourth-wicket stand of 246 which emphatically altered the complexion of the second Investec Test and the three-match series.
Last Saturday the Windies were being shredded from all sides after losing 19 wickets in a day at Edgbaston but here the Barbadian duo delved into their reserves of heart and skill to see their side to 329 for five and a lead of 71.
At 11.38am they came together on 35 for three and were not to be parted for almost six hours, when Brathwaite’s 249-ball stay ended at Stuart Broad’s hand.
The opener had enjoyed an eventful time, coming out on the right side of DRS reviews on 35, 46, 81 and 114 and reaching both 50 and 100 with sixes clubbed over long-on.
Kraigg Brathwaite raises his bat after a superb ton.
Hope, meanwhile, finally made a down payment on his much-discussed promise. In his first 21 Test innings he averaged just 18.61 with a solitary half-century to his name; number 22 was a joyously different story, including 92 in boundaries and the resolve to press on after being felled by a Ben Stokes bouncer.
Things started in a very different tenor, with James Anderson’s bid to become the sixth member of Test cricket’s 500-wicket club the focus of the morning session.
Having moved to 493 on the first evening he turned in an exemplary six-over burst containing three maidens, just five runs and scalps 494 and 495.
Nightwatchman Devendra Bishoo willingly donated his, wafting lazily to Jonny Bairstow, before the elder Hope brother, Kyle, nicked an inswinger that was well held by the diving Joe Root.
If there was any Yorkshire truculence about the Lancashire favourite closing in on his landmark on White Rose turf it was impossible to locate in a capacity crowd, but Anderson has long been a national treasure rather than a parochial one.
It seemed likely more successes would follow but by now the match-changing partnership was under way as both Broad and Chris Woakes – recalled after injury here for the unlucky Toby Roland-Jones – failed to land a blow.
Woakes was unfortunate not to do so, testing Hope with a couple of near-unplayable deliveries, but Brathwaite was digging his heels in.
Anderson was the pick of the England bowlers, claiming 3-46.
He successfully overturned a pair of on-field lbw decisions, Broad denied by an inside edge and Moeen Ali hitting the pad outside the line. By then Brathwaite was one blow away from 50 and he toasted a judicious use of DRS by clubbing the next ball for the first six of the match, while Hope was busily building his own platform with some fluent strokes.
From 109 for three at lunch, Brathwaite and Hope added 97 more in the middle session as the sun shone, the ball softened and spirits flagged in the field.
Tellingly, even Anderson could not rally the troops, conceding nine from his first visit of the session having allowed only 10 from his previous 12 overs.
The West Indian duo were warming to their task as the milestones ticked by, a flick from Hope heralding the century stand, a drive off Woakes earning him a 72-ball 50 and Brathwaite bringing the deficit down into double figures with an authoritative clatter through cover.
Brathwaite came out on the right side of a third referral when England fancied him caught behind off Moeen and he timed his run to three figures perfectly, launching Tom Westley’s fifth ball in international cricket – and the penultimate one before tea – into the stands.
Stand up and fightback! pic.twitter.com/xqMeBlIWBV
— CricketWestIndies (@westindies) August 26, 2017
Hope stepped into the spotlight at the start of the third session, accelerating sweetly past his previous best of 90 and moving to 99 with a picturesque swivel pull off the less-than-content Stokes.
He tucked the next ball off his hip and wheeled away in celebration, swinging his bat and shouting in satisfaction.
A flashy off-side blow from Brathwaite took the partnership past 200 as England hunkered down for the second new ball, but when it did arrive the desired breakthrough did not.
Instead, almost 10 overs and 35 more runs passed before Broad forced one through Brathwaite’s defences and parted the stumps. Stokes added the bonus wicket of Roston Chase but Hope ensured he would be there to lead the fight again on day three alongside Jermaine Blackwood, who reached stumps on 21 from 23 balls.
