England vs West Indies 2nd Test: 5 Talking Points as spectacular Stokes pulls hosts level

After a demoralising win under his captaincy in the 1st Test against the West Indies, Ben Stokes had one of the best matches of his career to pull England level in the 3-match series.

Riding on the all-rounder's scores of 176 and 78*, apart from his 3 wickets, the Three Lions managed to outplay the visitors by 113 runs at Old Trafford. Returning captain Joe Root didn't have the best of Tests with the bat in hand, but England's bowling attack and the young batsmen proved up to the task.

West Indies' captain Jason Holder's decision to field first backfired as the hosts amassed 469 runs in the first essay. The Caribbean batsmen didn't offer much resistance, and were skittled for 287 and 198 in the 2nd and 4th innings of the Test respectively.

Here are 5 talking points from the 2nd Test between England and West Indies.

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#5 West Indies pacers get it horribly wrong

Shannon Gabriel went wicketless after a Man of the Match performance

Coming into the 2nd Test, the West Indies pacers were expected to thrive in what were seamer-friendly conditions in Manchester. But the pace attack failed to produce the goods despite sufficient assistance from the pitch, and were often far too short with their lengths.

Shannon Gabriel, who was the Man of the Match in the 1st Test, went wicketless in the game and didn't appear threatening in the least. Kemar Roach's indifferent form continued although he did manage to snaffle 4 wickets in the Test, the highest tally for any pacer.

Alzarri Joseph's fledgling Test career hasn't gone to plan so far, and even the accurate Holder couldn't get wickets when his team needed him to. Roston Chase saved the Windies' blushes, bowling 44 overs in the 1st innings and picking up a 5-wicket haul for his troubles.

If West Indies are to put up a fight in the series decider at Old Trafford, the pacers need to bring their 'A' game against a resurgent England side.

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#4 Does Dom Sibley deserve the criticism he is getting?

Dom Sibley's first lofted shot resulted in his dismissal

Dominic Sibley dug in in the 1st innings of the Test in what were challenging conditions to bat in, playing 372 balls for his 120 runs. Even after reaching the 3-figure mark, the opener was rather circumspect, causing Michael Holding to comment that the innings was helping rather than harming the West Indian cause, on air.

But was that the case? Sibley was accompanied by Stokes at the crease for a major part of his innings, and the southpaw was undoubtedly the aggressor in the partnership. While Sibley scored only 5 boundaries, his dogged knock all but batted the Windies out of the Test match.

The fact that his strike rate of 32.25 is the fourth-slowest 100+ plus score doesn't make for good reading, and with Rory Burns not the most fluent of batsmen as well, perhaps some of the outrage is justified. But Sibley finally seems to be showing signs of making an opening slot his own, and the only way henceforth is up for the youngster.

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#3 Shai Hope's nightmare run of form continues

Shai Hope has been in abysmal form of late

Shai Hope is the best batsman the West Indies have seen since Shivnarine Chanderpaul, but the classy No. 3 just isn't producing the goods for his side. After his superb knock at Headingley against the same opposition took his team to a famous win in 2017, he was expected to kick on and truly establish himself as the leader of the West Indies batting lineup.

But since February 2019, Hope has scored 111 runs at an average of 12.33. Even tail-ender Kemar Roach has scored more runs at a better average - 114 at 19. Hope has shown a tendency to get stuck on the crease, with both his dismissals in the Test finding him neither forward nor back.

This predicament is not fitting of a top-order Test batsman, especially one who has played over 30 Tests and 75 ODIs for his country. Hope needs to iron out these kinks if he is to truly fulfil his potential in Test cricket, and time is fast running out for him to do so.

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#2 England face a problem of plenty with the pacers

Stuart Broad stepped up in the absence of partner-in-crime Jimmy Anderson

James Anderson was rested for this Test, with his recent injury history and the swift resumption of cricket after the break the most obvious reasons. Jofra Archer was excluded from the squad after breaking COVID-19 protocols on his way to Manchester, and Mark Wood was also dropped after a poor game.

These changes led to a completely new-look England pace attack featuring the likes of Sam Curran, Chris Woakes, and Stuart Broad. All three fast bowlers excelled at Old Trafford, giving England a selection headache ahead of the 3rd Test.

Woakes and Broad picked up 6 and 5 wickets respectively, and bowled incisive spells whenever called upon. England have never lost a Test at home that has featured Sam Curran, and the all-rounder also lends enviable balance to the side.

The Three Lions have a massive selection dilemma heading into the 3rd Test, which Archer and Anderson will most likely return for.

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#1 Windies get front-row tickets to The Ben Stokes Show

Ben Stokes completely outplayed Jason Holder in the 2nd Test

When Carlos Brathwaite deposited Ben Stokes over the boundaries 4 times in a row in the 2016 T20 World Cup final, many wondered if the Englishman's career would ever recover from the pasting. But the fighter in Stokes (no, not Bristol) has refused to give up.

The Durham man has since won his country a World Cup and pulled off an impossible heist in the Ashes. And in the most recent feather to his cap, Stokes scored over 250 runs and picked up 3 wickets in the same Test, a record that puts him on par with the legendary Sir Ian Botham.

Stokes' minor adjustments to his technique (his modified trigger movement) have paid rich dividends, and the southpaw averages close to 60 since. He is good enough to get into the team as a batsman alone, but gives it all with ball in hand and is safe as houses in the slips.

4 years after his worst moment as a cricketer and days after a loss in his first Test as captain, Ben Stokes had his moment of redemption against the West Indies.