West Indies captain Jason Holder starred in a dramatic fightback as wickets tumbled on a remarkable first day of the third and deciding Test against England at Lord’s on Thursday.
When bad light eventually ended play, England had slumped to 46 for four in reply to West Indies’ seemingly mediocre 123 all out – a deficit of 77 runs – with the three-match series all square at 1-1.
Dawid Malan and Ben Stokes were both 13 not out after towering paceman Holder had taken two for 18 in six overs.
It seemed England would have the upper hand when Stokes returned Test-best figures of six for 26 in 14.3 unchanged overs either side of tea.
But never before had a Test at the ‘home of cricket’ started so late in the English season and the 19 overs England faced Monday was time enough for a collapse of their own in still heavily overcast conditions on a green-tinged pitch affected by a fungal infection.
England rapidly declined to 24 for four in a match that would surely have been halted a lot earlier for bad light before the advent of floodlights at Lord’s.
England skipper Joe Root was dismissed by his opposing counterpart for just one run.
Mark Stoneman was caught behind for one off Kemar Roach before fellow left-handed opener Alastair Cook (10) fell in similar fashion.
Tom Westley then saw his prospects of an Ashes tour place fade whem he was plumb lbw to Holder for eight — his fifth successive single-figure score in Test cricket.
Holder struck at the start of his next over to have opposing captain and star batsman Joe Root well caught for just one by Kieran Powell in the slips.
Malan, on his Middlesex home ground, survived the hat-trick.
Root gone. England now 24-4
Follow LIVE: https://t.co/Cyyqfe6dy6 pic.twitter.com/7U2mEfNGrq
— England Cricket (@englandcricket) September 7, 2017
Earlier, Stokes’s figures surpassed his previous Test-best of six for 36 against Australia at Trent Bridge in 2015.
James Anderson, who helped Stokes on his way with a brilliant slip catch, was left one shy of becoming the first England bowler to take 500 Test wickets after a return of two for 31 in 16 overs.
The West Indies had batted superbly to chase down a target of 322 in winning the second Test at Headingley last week.
But runs only came freely when Powell (39) and Shai Hope (29), fresh from his twin hundreds at Headingley, were combining in a third-wicket partnership of 56 after Holder won the toss.
Anderson, wicketless in the second innings at Headingley, had Kraigg Brathwaite – who made 134 and 95 in Leeds — dropped on three in the slips by Cook and then caught behind for 10 to leave West Indies 18 for one.
After a 40-minute rain break, Kyle Hope was out for a duck when, trying to withdraw his bat to Anderson, he was well caught by diving wicket-keeper Jonny Bairstow.
Anderson had taken two wickets for no runs in 12 balls and West Indies were 22 for two.
Ben Stokes claimed six wickets to get his name onto the Lord’s Honours Boards.
Kyle Hope’s exit brought in younger brother Shai Hope, who made 147 and 118 not out — his first two Test hundreds — at Headingley.
After lunch, Anderson pressed hard for the elusive 500th wicket but it would not come and Root took him out of the attack. A later spell saw Anderson repeatedly beat Devendra Bishoo’s outside edge without reward.
Instead it was Toby Roland-Jones, who took two for 32 on his Middlesex home ground having been dropped at Headingley, and Stokes who shared the remaining West Indies wickets.
Roland-Jones claimed the prize scalp of Shai Hope, who scored 28 runs in boundaries, when he cut one away from the right-hander and had him caught by Cook.
Stokes, given just five overs by Root in the second innings at Headingley, produced the delivery of the day to square up Roston Chase (18) and clip the top of his off stump before polishing off the tail in a spell of three for none in six balls.
