Joe Root, Alex Lees make steady start after Mahmood, Fisher handed England debuts

Zak Crawley falls for a duck but West Indies unable to exert pressure in slow morning

England 47 for 1 (Root 31*, Lees 16*) vs West Indies

Thereafter, however, West Indies were unable to exert any sustained pressure as the assistance dissipated from the new ball. Lees in particular was allowed to settle all too readily after scores of 4 and 6 on debut last week, with too few deliveries targeting his stumps after consecutive lbws in that game. He got off the mark with a flick through backward square in the third over, and added his second four in the first hour with a calm push through long-off, both off Kemar Roach.

At the other end, Root – who made his 24th Test hundred in Antigua last week – was more proactive from the get-go. He nailed an early pull off Seales to get his innings going, and followed up with a brace of uncharacteristically loose drives through the off side from Alzarri Joseph, the second of which skimmed over the head of gully for four.

Root did, however, have two moments of alarm – the second of which ought, by rights, to have ended his innings on 23. By then, however, West Indies had burned their first review on an lbw appeal from Seales that was shown to be sliding over the top of off stump. For that reason, they kept their counsel when Jason Holder wriggled a length delivery through to the keeper via a tangle of bat and pad – only for replays to show that Root had indeed got a thin inside-edge as the ball went by.

With Saqib Mahmood already inked in for his own debut, following confirmation that neither Mark Wood nor Ollie Robinson had been passed fit for this contest, it meant that England are fielding two debutants for the first time since Robinson himself and James Bracey had made their first appearances at Lord’s last summer.

Robinson, who missed the first Test with a back spasm, was not risked for this contest despite appearing to pull up well in the nets, with the England management taking a cautious approach after he suffered a similar problem in the Hobart Test against Australia in January.

Mahmood’s debut was confirmed on Tuesday evening, after Wood – England’s fastest bowler – missed the second half of the Antigua Test with “acute pain” in a right elbow injury. Fisher, the most impressive bowler on England Lions’ tour to Australia, will have a watching brief for the time being, but is expected to take the new ball alongside Chris Woakes, with Ben Stokes and Jack Leach completing England’s five-man attack.

Although long earmarked as an international prospect, Fisher has struggled with injuries in his brief career, but earned his surprise England call-up after claiming 20 wickets at 19.65 in five County Championship appearances last summer. All told he has taken 63 wickets at 27.52 in his first-class career.