FIRST ODI TALKING POINTS: Never write-off Chris Gayle and the most sixes in an ODI innings

England showed exactly why they're the favourites to win the World Cup as they chased down the West Indies large total of 360 with relative ease. Their largest ever. TOM EDWARDS has some of the talking points from a good day of cricket...

Chris Gayle definitely still has it

There were some question makes over whether the self-proclaimed Universe Boss Chris Gayle, at the ripe age of 39, was still the powerhouse who struck fear into bowlers the world over. Those questions were well and truly put to bed after this century.

He called it "one of his best innings" but early on it looked like all the pre-match suspicions may have been well-founded. After 20 overs he was on 26 off 54 balls - not the Gayle we are all familiar with.

It even took him 37 balls to score his first six, his 477th six in international cricket, which took him past Pakistan’s Shahid Afridi for most sixes in international cricket.

That slow start, though, was the reason why Gayle rated it so highly.

"You check my career and I haven't started like that. But it's not how you start, it's how you finish," he explained after the innings.

He was bowled by Ben Stokes having scored 135 off 126 balls and 12 sixes. It was his third against England and drew him level with the great Viv Richards for the most by a West Indies batsman against England.

It’s not how you start, it’s how you finish, and if this is the way Gayle is going to finish his career, the World Cup could be rather fun.

^{Chris Gayle reminded everyone of how good he is}

Jason Roy strengthens his Test case

This was tale of two batsmen, both of them coming in at No.1. All the talk was about Chris Gayle’s big hitting after the first innings, but Jason Roy showed the Kensington Oval exactly what real hitting looks like and how much the game has progressed with his 123 of 85 balls.

The licence with which players like Roy play with at the top of the order owes a huge amount to what Gayle has been doing throughout his career.

There are few English players with an eye like Roy’s, and it was an innings which seemed to strengthen the calls for him to get a go in the Test side.

Jason Roy will be opening the batting in the first Ashes Test of the summer #justsaying #worthapunt

— Matt Prior (@MattPrior13) February 20, 2019

The argument has been made that Roy doesn’t open in first-class cricket, and it’s an important one.

Those arguing in favour of Roy’s pick will use David Warner’s Test match success as an example that it can work, but equally it could be said that Aaron Finch’s recent failures is more proof of the difficulty to transfer performances from one to the other.

Roy is certainly one of the most talented batsman England have, and it would be difficult to find many more entertaining English batsmen.

Picking him in the England Test side would be a risk, there is no question about it, but he’ll certainly not die wanting if he is picked.

The case for Tom Curran

The England pace bowling trio of Chris Woakes, Mark Wood and Liam Plunkett did not have their best day. Fine, Woakes actually did very well, and the pitch didn’t provide them with too much assistance.

However, with the World Cup fast approaching, the only thing in the England setup that looks up for debate is which fast bowlers they go with.

Woakes finished with figures of 2-59 but neither Wood nor Plunkett were able to take any wickets. Wood managed to keep it relatively tight early on, going for seven an over, but Plunkett struggled and went at nine an over.

Looking back at how these players did across 2018, these were not the sort of performances which will improve their chances of making the first XI come the World Cup.

During 2018, Wood took 13 wickets in 16 matches at an average of 57.92, while Plunkett took 19 in 12 matches at 27.47. Tom Curran, on the other hand, took 17 wickets at in 10 games at 26.64.

Moreover, Curran comes into this series having enjoyed a fantastic Big Bash for the Sydney Sixers, making most publications’ team of the tournament - including this one.

The argument will be that Wood’s pace offers an extra dimension, but England would be really foolish to fail to let Curran take the momentum he has built up out in Australia into this series.

^{Could Tom Curran improve England's bowling?}

The most sixes in an ODI innings

Chris Gayle taking the mantle of the player with the most sixes in international cricket was not the only record which was broken during the match. There was another big one.

When Ashley Nurse crashed the final ball of the West Indies innings into the stands, it was the 23rd six of the innings and meant that the hosts had broken the record for the most sixes in an ODI innings.

This broke the previous record which had been set by New Zealand against the Windies on New Year’s Day 2014.

That game saw a rather remarkable performance from Corey Anderson, who scored what was then the fastest-ever ODI century - it took him just 36 balls.

The man who naturally contributed the most sixes was the big-hitting Chris Gayle, who had hit 12 of the 23.

It was also the West Indies highest-ever ODI score against England, beating their previous highest-score of 365 at The Oval in 2017. The highest scored by England against the West Indies in an ODI is 369 at Bristol in 2017.