England Slump to Devastating Defeat

Kevin Pieterson said this week that he couldn't wait to get home, and it seemed as though his top order friends were desperate to oblige him. It seems farcical that it required a spirited fightback, lead by Mascarenhas and Batty to force England's total up to 117, and past the previous worst, 86 against Australia eight years before.
Of more concern than the defeat, will be the manner in which class batsmen relinquished their wickets. The West Indians bowled well, but the loose and lazy manner in which England's top order were dismissed was very alarming. At a time when they should be fighting for the series, pride, and a place in the Ashes XI, very few looked interested in showing any kind of grit or determination to deal with a situation that was getting more embarrassing with ever over.
Chris Gayle then showed the exact gulf in confidence with a blistering innings, to show the England players exactly how easy batting could be, even on a track that had some moisture in it. Although not everyone is capable of that kind of aggressive batting, the conviction in his stroke play (no doubt helped by the small total he was chasing) was in stark contract to the timid attempts at aggression shown by his England equivalents.

However, as this tour slowly winds to a close there seems to be (yet again) an issue with the organisation of England's tours overseas. Very few teams would be on tour for over two months, especially after difficult India series, and it seems that England have had their fill of life overseas. Despite the long tour they still managed the age old touring affliction of failing to prepare adequately. Although this is perhaps an excuse, the England setup need to look at tour structures. International players shouldn't lose interest in playing as the current crop seem to have done, so the coaching set up may need more scrutiny as well. Either way, despite Strauss's platitudes one can't help but feel that the best thing for this wounded England team is to get home as soon as possible.