Twitter Reactions: Dom Sibley and Ben Stokes' twin centuries keep England on top on Day 2

West Indies finished at 32/1 at the end of Day 2. Kraigg Brathwaite is batting on 6 while night watchman Alzarri Joseph is on 14 runs. Earlier in the day England consolidated their lead and declared on 469/9. The West Indies bowlers seemed off-color and even though the ball was moving around earlier in the day they could make no successful use of it.

Ben Stokes and Dominic Sibley continued their amazing performance and as a result, England did not lose any wickets in the first session. In the post-lunch session, England again displayed some wonderful batting and did not lose any wickets in the first half. Post drinks Sibley lost his wicket in an attempt to accelerate the run flow. This was the end of a 260-run partnership between Stokes and Sibley.

Sibley who had been rock solid and had displayed proper Test match batting was finally dismissed by Chase on 120 runs. It was now time for the England batsman to accelerate. They had been playing with a very slow run rate and the weather prediction for Day 3 was not good either. Here’s where Stokes took matters in his hands and showed the world how versatile a player he is.

Ben Stokes went on to score 176 runs and was later dismissed by Kemar Roach. This was Roach’s first wicket in five innings but it was a wicket his team really needed. He dismissed Chris Woakes off the very next delivery and it seemed like the West Indies finally had the opening they required. However just as it had been all through this Test match, West Indies again missed out on the opportunity.

Crucial cameos by Jos Buttler and Dom Bess helped England reach 469 runs, a total they would delightfully accept. Butler scored a good 40 while Dom Bess showed his aggressive side by scoring 31 runs in only 26 balls. At 469-9 the England Captain finally called his team back and announced their declaration.

West Indies end Day 2 losing a wicket

The West Indies batsmen survived the initial nine overs well and were on their way to end the day without losing a wicket. This is when Root gave the ball to Sam Curran who delivered in his very first over. He got John Campbell LBW on 12 runs and gave England their first breakthrough. Brathwaite and Jospeh played out the remaining overs to make sure that West Indies do not lose any more wickets.

With the weather prediction of Day 3 not very good it would be interesting to see what turn this match takes. While the West Indies have shown their batting prowess in the previous game, the England team would be high on confidence after an amazing batting performance.

Here are the best tweets

Roston Chase is playing his 34th test match and has taken 66 wickets.

Versus, England he has taken 1/3rd of those wickets. (22) in 8 test & 10 innings with two 5-for

England has a habit of making average spin bowlers look like shane warne. #engvwi #wicb #manchester #stokes

— Prashanth (@YVPRASH) July 18, 2020

Stokes is already a better player than flintoff was #ENGvWI

— damian chandler (@damochandler82) July 18, 2020

There is a spring in @StuartBroad8’s walk and I have a feeling that he is out on the field with plenty to show. #ENGvWI

— Sachin Tendulkar (@sachin_rt) July 17, 2020

🖐️🏾for Roston Chase. This 3rd Test Five-fer, as he gets Curran caught for 17
ENG 427/9
Bess 0* Broad 0*#WIReady #ENGvWI #MenInMaroon pic.twitter.com/m6hcI3lzAQ

— Windies Cricket (@windiescricket) July 17, 2020

Right now, losing a centurion might be a blessing in disguise for England…. #EngvWI

— Aakash Chopra (@cricketaakash) July 17, 2020

“It’s all good talk of being there for people when things are going well and smoothly but what really comes through is how you operate when someone needs you the most.”
Ben Stokes#ENGvsWI #ENGvWI

— Inayat (@Inayat_07) July 18, 2020

Alastair Cook is every bit as thrilling a commentator as he was a batsman. #ENGvWI

— 🥃Donald Clarke📽 (@DonaldClarke63) July 17, 2020

KL Rahul
Virat Kohli

36.5 overs

Ben Stokes
Chris Woakes

It was a long wait of 521 balls between wickets for Kemar Roach#ENGvWI #Cricket

— Rakesh Shetty (@stumpmics) July 18, 2020

England’s best player … England’s best fielder … England’s most impactful bowler … England’s best batsman at the moment delivers once again … @benstokes38 is a freak … nothing he cannot do … #TestCricket #ENGvWI

— Michael Vaughan (@MichaelVaughan) July 17, 2020

👏🏻 partnership stitched up between @DomSibley & @benstokes38 to bail out England from a tricky position. They both applied themselves very well & have batted patiently to shift the balance in this Test.
It has been a great battle between bat & ball in the 1st session. #ENGvWI pic.twitter.com/lRQseKoERZ

— Sachin Tendulkar (@sachin_rt) July 17, 2020