England took advantage of the absence of Hayley Matthews to thrash West Indies by 143 runs in the second one-day international at Leicester on Wednesday.
Having waited 12 years to score a maiden international hundred, Amy Jones resolved to achieve the feat twice in five days, and this time did so in just 76 balls, reaching 129 before departing in the 31st over. Tammy Beaumont, meanwhile, followed up with a second consecutive hundred of her own, despite battling what she jokingly described as “man flu”.
The decision of Charlotte Edwards, the head coach, to reunite the pair after a five-year break now looks like a masterstroke, after they became the first players in ODI history to share consecutive partnerships of more than 200. Beaumont said: “We know each other really well, we’ve known each other for years and years. I couldn’t have asked for it to go better.
“I’m so proud of [Amy] backing up that first century at Derby, in even better style, and pretty much having to manage my man flu at times. For her to take that lead role there and look after me, as well as go and play like that, was outstanding.”
Matthews had been ruled out before play because of a shoulder injury, presumably sustained after carrying the entire weight of her team all tour. She spent the England innings stalking the boundary in a sling; she will see a specialist on Thursday to assess whether she is able to play any part in the final ODI at Taunton on Saturday.
West Indies were also without their hard-hitting opener Qiana Joseph with flu, but the 20‑year‑old Realeanna Grimmond proved a ready replacement, striking a 64-ball half‑century on ODI debut.
Grimmond seemed unfazed at being asked to open, even when she was struck on the forearm by a ferocious Lauren Filer, who clocked 75mph in her first international match since the Ashes. The young West Indies batter clobbered Lauren Bell for two sixes over the leg side, before finally holing out to long-on in the 23rd over.
Kate Cross then became just the eighth Englishwoman to reach 100 ODI wickets, with a little bit of help from DRS – UltraEdge concluding definitively that she had caught the under-edge of Aaliyah Alleyne’s bat on the way through to Jones behind the stumps. Cross sat out the winter’s Ashes series with a back injury, and has admitted she felt her international career might be over, stuck for ever on 98 ODI scalps; this felt like vindication for all those hours spent in agonising rehab.
West Indies were always going far too slowly to threaten England’s target, but they made the bowlers sweat for their series win: two DRS reviews burned; two catches shelled; a wild onslaught of 44 from 24 balls by Jannillea Glasgow; and a defiant tail which added 69 runs between the fall of the seventh and 10th wickets – 44 of them in boundaries. Finally, in the 46th over, Alice Capsey had Cherry‑Ann Fraser caught at point and the celebrations could begin.
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If Jones’s first international hundred had been all stuttering relief, her second oozed grace and timing. She admitted on the eve of this match that she had been disappointed, five years ago, to be bumped down into the middle order by the then-coach Lisa Keightley: “Having the chance to set the tone is a really cool responsibility.”
She certainly did that here, dominating a 202-run partnership with Beaumont. “We complement each other so well,” Beaumont said. “The height difference means we hit different lengths in different areas.”
Emma Lamb was presumably Edwards’s other contender for the ODI opening spot, but – assuming things continue like this – she now needs to get used to sitting around for extended periods before her services are required at No 3. Here, she contributed a nifty knock of 55 from 45 balls, while aggressive cameos from Sophia Dunkley and Capsey helped England to accelerate at the death – albeit not quite at the rocket speeds promised in the early overs.
Grimmond had shelled a chance offered up by Jones on 43, diving forward at point, but redeemed herself somewhat by snaffling two impressive catches in the deep in the closing overs. England’s score of 366 left them 12 runs short of their record ODI total – although still with far more than they were ever likely to need.
