England tally up 345 to defeat the West Indies by 108 runs in Derby

The opening stand of 222 between Amy Jones and Tammy Beaumont in the 1st ODI against the West Indies could not be further from the so-called fearless (reckless) cricket England fans have had to endure over the past few years.

Photo Credit: England Cricket

It’s quite indicative of a new era when Jones, twelve years into her England career, scores her maiden ODI century. It’s no secret that Jones has struggled for form across international cricket. Domestically, for The Blaze, she has put in some reassuring performances but often, having to come to the middle with England in a temperamental position, the pressure proves too much.

In the Metrobank One Day Cup, Jones has been opening the batting, a promotion in the order to her usual international place. This has meant the opportunity to open with Tammy Beaumont. Somewhat familiarly, it was Jones and Beaumont, both Blaze players, in Derbyshire (kind of not but technically a home ground for the Blaze – yes it’s complicated) who waled out to the middle. This time for England.

The pressure being taken away was the obvious difference, Jones’ nerves showing as she went into the 90s, being dropped on 91 and 92 from reckless shots. At the other end was the calm Beaumont who, after a tentative start, upped the run rate in a sensible fashion.

222 in 35 overs was an idyllic platform for England to push on, amounting 345 after the full 50. By no means was it a flawless performance with some regulation catches handed to West Indies.

In reply, the visitors had a choice: go for it and try and get as many runs as fast as possible with the risk of losing wickets or painstakingly try and bat out the 50 overs but be well below the run rate. They pretty much opted for the latter.

Qiana Joseph is a classic hit or miss player with only three of her last 10 innings reaching double figures. On this occasion, she racked up 62 runs before being bowled by Alice Capsey.

As expected, wickets did fall, ODI debutant Linsey Smith taking an outstanding 5-fer, and the full 50 overs looked unachievable at times. It wasn’t a completely sluggish innings with Aaliyah Alleyne putting in a shift in the middle order and scoring 44 but it was never going to be enough.

If today was anything to go by, it’s going to be a long series for the West Indies with Leicester and Taunton to come. While it was a better performance with the bat than initially expected by the West Indies, it was still a simple victory for the hosts.