West Indies misery continues.

At the end of day two of Test #1 at Lords, England seems well poised to once again boost their rankings at the expense of an inept West Indian opponent. As with Strauss, Collingwood, Harmison and Hoggard a few years ago, good county players seem destined to resemble the world's best cricketers only to be eventually brought back to reality when they travel to Asia, South Africa, Australia or New Zealand. Should the West Indies bat in this first test of this most recent series, it surely will only be at the invitation of England or Englands decision to sacrifice attention for entertainment. The 'quality' of the West Indians in the field is best highlighted by the fact that 4 of England's first 7 batsmen have scored a century. Three of the centurions are #'s 5, 6, and 7 and  two of them are still at the crease. In Addition at 37, extras are so far the 5th highest scorer.

The Score - End of Day 2  - England 553/5 from 142 overs.

Details Cricinfo

West Indies Captain R. Sarwan spoke with the media at the end of Day 2. Below are his remarks.
Dropped Catches Cost Us - Sarwan

LONDON, United Kingdom – West Indies captain Ramnaresh Sarwan spoke with the media after the second day of the first Test match at Lord's. Following are excerpts from his responses.

On England's batsmen getting a fine total:
This morning when we spoke, we said if we could get two quick wickets and get England out for anywhere between 300 to 350 it would be a good total for us to actually put ourselves in a position where we can score 450, give them to bat and put them under some pressure. Unfortunately we dropped a few catches and it cost us.

On the bowlers bowling well in the first session:
Jerome (Taylor) and Daren (Powell) bowled really well. If we had taken our chances it would have been a lot more difficult for the batsmen coming in, Bell and Prior who came in and played pretty well afterwards. We have to look past that now, it's important that when we get our chance to bat that we play very well.

On the fielding becoming a bit loose towards the end of the day's play:
Sometimes in the field we were a bit ragged. Perhaps the guys were a bit tired, coming off the boundaries a bit slow but overall I thought we had a good day in the field (in terms of ground fielding) but I'm sure we can improve.

On debutant centurion Matt Prior:
I played against him in county cricket and I said before the Test match started that he is a very attacking player and he looks to score all the time and someone who looks to score all the time is very dangerous and he showed that today.

On whether it is frustrating when the bowlers create chances but catches are not taken:
It's very disappointing but you have to understand that everyone goes out there to give of their best. No one goes out there to bowl bad balls or to drop catches but it happens in this sport that we play. We have to pick ourselves up tomorrow and if we have to bowl, to put the ball in the right spot and when the chances come to try and take them. Most importantly when we get the opportunity to bat we have to make use of it.

On whether he is still enjoying the job as captain:
It's been a bit difficult on the field. Things didn't really go the way we wanted it to go but it has been fun. I have been enjoying it, I've seen it (opposition scoring a lot of runs) happen before as vice captain but you might as well enjoy it as much as you can because from the time you start to get depressed you will find you start thinking too much. I have been getting the support from the guys and I think that is very important.

On whether the lack of practice hampered the bowlers:
I think we showed how well we can bowl when we get the ball in our hands it is that we are not doing it on a consistent basis. It has always been a concern for us so that is something that we need to work on. I said it when I got here in England, consistency is what we are striving for. What I would like to see is people improving and being more consistent. Unfortunately we didn't take our chances and I think that changed the game because Jerome Taylor and Daren Powell were bowling well and the ball was doing a lot so I don't think it would have been easy for the batters who were coming in. It (dropped catches) cost us to be honest.

On whether he is concerned that there may still be some life in the pitch:
It's pretty flat to be honest, when it gets a bit overcast the ball tends to seam around a bit more and swing a bit more. Quite a few of us toured here as batters before and we know exactly what to expect.