Archive June 1, 2025

Second ODI, Cardiff

West Indies 308 (47. 4 overs): Carty 103 (105); Rashid 4-63

England 312-7 (48. 5 overs): Root 166* (139); Joseph 4-31

England won by three wickets; lead series 2-0

Joe Root became England’s leading run-scorer in one-day internationals as his sparkling unbeaten 166 secured a three-wicket win over West Indies in Cardiff.

Root, who is also his country’s highest run-scorer in Tests, finished with 166 from 139 balls as England reached their target of 309 with seven balls remaining to take the three-match series with a game to spare.

He surpassed World Cup-winning captain Eoin Morgan’s tally of 6,957 runs on the way to his highest ODI score, leading England’s recovery from 93-4 which included ducks for Jamie Smith, Ben Duckett and Jos Buttler.

Root combined with Harry Brook for a third-wicket stand of 85, before a masterful partnership of 143 with Will Jacks put England within touching distance of victory.

A fierce spell from Alzarri Joseph, who finished with 4-31, accounted for Jacks for 49 and Brydon Carse for two to keep West Indies interested, but Root and Adil Rashid calmly ticked off the remaining 21 runs, sealed in style by a classical Root drive down the ground.

Earlier, West Indies’ 308 was set up by Keacy Carty’s 103, bookended by half-centuries from Brandon King and Shai Hope – and with plenty of assistance from England’s sloppy fielding.

Carty and King added 141 for the second wicket but the former was put down on by Duckett on one and Saqib Mahmood on 41, while Duckett also dropped King on 11 and somehow squandered a run out opportunity when both batters were stranded in the middle of the pitch in the 21st over.

The innings fell away from 205-2 when Carty fell three balls after reaching his century, with Rashid taking 4-63 and Mahmood’s three late wickets mopping up the tail.

The visitors were left to rue wasting 14 balls of their innings as the last five wickets fell for 50 runs, the lower order offering Hope little support as he was last to depart for 78 from 66 balls.

England seamers Carse and Mahmood were lively in their opening burst – the former had opener Jewel Andrew caught at cover with some unexpected bounce in the second over – only for three dropped catches to follow.

Carty continued his rich run of form with a third ODI ton in his past four matches, punishing England’s numerous errors. The first was a difficult chance which popped out of Duckett’s hand as he dived full stretch at second slip, but the next was a sitter, the batter sweeping straight to Mahmood at short fine leg off Jacob Bethell.

Duckett should also have taken his chance off King, fielding in the same position as the ball burst through his hands after a flashing drive.

The missed run-out followed before the two batters settled down, steadily taking West Indies to 146-1 at the halfway stage before King holed out to long-on off Rashid.

Carty continued to flourish, and reached his ton from 102 balls in the 35th over, combining with the ever-classy Hope to score freely as England’s seamers leaked runs from their short ball plan.

But Carty’s wild swipe off Jacks was the first of many loose shots as West Indies failed to capitalise on the platform. Shimron Hetmyer was pinned lbw to Rashid before Justin Greaves, Matthew Forde and Gudakesh Motie were all caught trying and failing to clear Cardiff’s short straight boundaries.

Coming to the crease after top-order failures is not unfamiliar territory for Root, who exemplified remarkable calm and assuredness from ball one.

Smith played a loose drive in the first over and was caught behind off Seales, and Duckett’s miserable day concluded with being caught at deep third off Forde in the next.

Root was able to ease in to his innings thanks to Brook’s counter-attacking approach, whacking 30 from his first 16 balls before he took on Joseph’s short ball and was caught three runs short of his half-century, and Buttler dragged onto his stumps off the same bowler two overs later.

Root was fortunate to survive an lbw shout off Forde when he was on six, given not out and the Windies’ review showing it was clipping the bails but umpire’s call.

A patient stand of 40 with Bethell followed, the youngster making 17 before he was lbw to Roston Chase to leave England teetering once more at 133-5.

But Root and Jacks consolidated by hitting the gaps smartly, the latter reining in his attacking instincts with just two boundaries struck in his first 50 balls as he allowed Root to dominate, launching a four and a six to go to his 98-ball century in style before effortlessly going up another gear.

“We fell away at the end and didn’t dominate with the bat. But we have to commend the bowlers for the fight they showed to keep us in the game until the end. “

England captain Harry Brook to BBC Test Match Special: “We probably weren’t clinical enough in the field to take those chances and we probably could’ve kept them to 250.

“Joe was unbelievable and he’s only getting better as well. He’s someone I look up to, he’s such an amazing player, such an amazing bloke and works the hardest out of anyone I’ve seen. “

Former England fast bowler Steven Finn on BBC Test Match Special: “Joe Root is just on this constant journey of ticking everything off before him and now he’s head and shoulders above the rest.

“His average is way higher than anyone else who’s played ODI cricket for England. He was so determined to be there at the end and the way he read the situation, soaked up pressure, saw people fall around him. “

Micky Mellon, the manager of Oldham Athletic, claims that his “monster of a club” will awaken after earning the Latics’ first promotion in 34 years.

In the epic National League promotion final against Southend at Wembley on Sunday, Mellon’s side won two quickfire goals in extra-time.

The Scots were promoted to the EFL for the third time as manager, matching John Still’s record, and he placed sixth overall in his professional football career.

And the 53-year-old predicted that the entire club would be affected by it.

“To turn things around and get a result from where we were is an incredible achievement,” Mellon told BBC Sport. We had a wonderful time at this.

The club is “monster” Because our family supports us, we were under a lot of pressure; we had to move up.

We can really advance behind the scenes at Oldham as a football club because it changes so much about everything.

“It’s massive, it’s monstrous to get us in [the league],” he said. For the club, everything has changed. “

More than 20 000 travelling Oldham supporters gathered in a record crowd of 52, 115 in the previous promotion, which Mellon said demonstrated the gap between the National League and the EFL is narrower than ever.

He continued, “There are some really big clubs in the National League that have been allowed to stagnate.”

“York ought to have automatically risen.” You can’t win 96 points and not automatically increase. Three up and three down should be used. The EFL would be improved by teams like York and Southend.

“I believe the EFL should give its former members, who are struggling, an olive branch.”

There are teams in League Two that aren’t as ambitious or as big as those in the National League, according to me. It needs to alter, I suppose.

With only two months until the season’s opener, Mellon acknowledged that his team would be behind in terms of preparation for the coming season and anticipates that his players will return to training in as little as four weeks.

He claimed, “We are so many weeks in the hiring process. It’s absurd. In about four weeks, we’ll need to be back training. Although it will be difficult, we will undoubtedly have chosen that route.

We’ll need to sit down and make arrangements, but I’m not too let down by the decision.

We hired a lot of these boys because we thought they would be good if we moved up and that there are plenty of league players there.