Saqib Mahmood relishes unexpected role as batting hero for England

GEORGE DOBELL IN GRENADA: Saqib, who went into this match with a previous highest score of 34 in first-class cricket, made an increasingly assured 49 to help England recover from 114 for 9, adding 90 for the 10th wicket with Jack Leach

A lack of respect from his teammates for his batting ability spurred Saqib Mahmood into a career-best performance in Grenada.

Saqib, who went into this match with a previous highest score of 34 in first-class cricket, made an increasingly assured 49 to help England recover from 114 for 9. The 90 he added with Jack Leach was England's highest 10th-wicket stand in the Caribbean and their highest anywhere for the wicket since 2014.

But afterwards Saqib admitted, albeit in good humour, that it was the sight of his teammates changed into their whites and ready to go into the field that had encouraged him to prove them wrong. And while they clearly didn't expect him to hang around for long, he eventually batted for more than 36 overs and hit his maiden first-class six.

"I did say to Leachy 'the cheeky f***ers have got their whites on!'" Saqib said with a big smile. "It did spur us on a little bit. I had a glance over later to see if some had taken them off but they left the whites on throughout. We did spot that.

^{Jack Leach and Saqib Mahmood put on 90 for the 10th wicket (Randy Brooks/AFP via Getty Images)}

"At one stage I faced 25 to 30 balls without getting a run, then I got dropped and I just thought 'I'm gonna take this guy down'. Some of the lads got stuck into me for running after I hit that six. It was good fun out there with Leachy, it was a case of being disciplined out there and hitting the bad ball.

"If you hear me in the dressing room I'll always talk myself up as a batter, but when you come into this environment and you've got guys bowling 145-150kph you tend to go quiet a little bit. I'll try and stay level after this, but it would have been nice to get 50.

"We know as bowlers when you've got tailenders scoring runs against you it's really frustrating. We tried to do the same out there. We tried to really grind it out then cash in when part-time bowlers and medium pacers came on."

"We were looking at getting them out for 150 at most and I think we let them off the hook"

Jayden Seales, West Indies bowler

While Saqib accepted the partnership hadn't completely rescued the situation for England, he did feel it has dragged them back into the match.

"We've won one session out of three so it's key we win the first session tomorrow," he said.

"But it could have easily fallen into pieces after the start we had in the first two sessions and we stuck at it well. Hopefully we have tired those guys out. It would have been nice to get 50 but in the grand scheme of things a 90-run partnership is the main thing and it's got us to a half decent total."

^{Jayden Seales admitted West Indies let England off the hook (Randy Brooks/AFP via Getty Images)}

Jayden Seales, the West Indies fast bowler, admitted his side had been frustrated by the partnership and felt it had lifted England to a decent total on a pitch he felt may become more difficult upon which to bat.

"It was definitely frustrating," he said. "We were looking at getting them out for 150 at most and I think we let them off the hook.

"The pitch has a lot in it for the bowlers once you keep the ball on the fuller side. That being said, once the ball gets older and softer it's a bit difficult to get wickets, so you have to remain patient to get batsmen out.

"On this wicket, that is actually a decent score. I think later in the game, it might go up and down with variable bounce. That's a decent score. It's game on."

Related Topics

• Jack Leach and Saqib Mahmood show England batsmen how it's done with remarkable recovery
• Put the 10th-wicket heroics to one side... this was a reality check for England
• Five ways to spend your extra day off on Grenada