Morgan praises Root, Roy after record chase

Joe Root and Jason Roy's partnership pleased England captain Eoin Morgan after a win over West Indies.

Published : Feb 21, 2019 11:58 IST

England batsman Joe Root
England batsman Joe Root
lightbox-info

England batsman Joe Root

England captain Eoin Morgan praised Joe Root and Jason Roy after his side's record-breaking one-day international win over West Indies in Barbados.

Roy (123) and Root (102) scored centuries as England reached their target of 361 with eight balls remaining to seal a six-wicket victory in the first ODI.

It was the nation's biggest successful run chase in ODIs, topping the 350 it managed against New Zealand in June 2015. Morgan praised Root and Roy for their 114-run partnership, but rued the way England fielded in the series opener.

"Joe and Roy, when they bat together, complement each other. The way they batted proves that," he said, via the ICC.

"We just didn't have a great day in the field, and we need to hold our catches on this kind of ground and wicket.

"Adil [Rashid] bowled well when he was asked. We are happy with where we are, and that's good with the World Cup in perspective."

Chris Gayle (135) put the Windies in a good position as the host smashed a record 23 sixes during its innings. But captain Jason Holder lamented the chances his team missed, with Roy and Root both dropped twice, the latter firstly when he was on 46.

"We didn't bowl as well as we'd like, and we simply didn't do well in the field," he said.

"Our energy and body language wasn't up to the mark, perhaps due to missed chances.

"The bowlers did create chances, but we didn't hold them – almost 6-7 chances. If we hold onto those... we will definitely be better in the next game."

The second game of the five-match series is on Friday.

Sign in to unlock all user benefits
  • Get notified on top games and events
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign up / manage to our newsletters with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early bird access to discounts & offers to our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide to our community guidelines for posting your comment