Bresnan battles but Bairstow struggles

Maybe they did not achieve domination in the manner they had planned but, by stumps at Trent Bridge, England had taken what will surely prove an unassailable grip on this match and this series. While Plan A - to amass an imposing first innings lead and bat once in the game - had to be abandoned, Plan B - to dismiss West Indies cheaply in their second innings - has been well executed.

There is some hope for West Indies. Not only do both first innings centurions remain unbeaten, but the tourists can take some encouragement in the performance of their three seamers earlier in the day. On a pitch offering them little, they performed admirably to restrict England's lead to 58. While their top-order batting remains so brittle, however, this team will rarely take advantage of their bowling prowess.

Perhaps the most heartening aspect of this performance from an England perspective has been the performance of Tim Bresnan. The selection of the 27-year-old Yorkshireman as third seamer was one of the few talking points going into this Test, with Steven Finn pushing hard for inclusion.

Here, however, Bresnan has provided another reminder of his undemonstrative all-round qualities. First, coming to the crease with his side still 34 in arrears and the new ball just 11 overs old, Bresnan helped England manufacture a lead of 58 in what he called a "battling" two-and-a-half hours at the crease, before he demonstrated his ability to reverse-swing the ball in a spell of three wickets for nine runs in 26 deliveries that drove another nail into the coffin of West Indies' hopes.

Bresnan bristles at the suggestion that he is some sort of 'lucky mascot' for England. It suggests, after all, that it is something of a coincidence that the team have won all 12 of the Tests in which he has played.

It is not so. Bresnan has played a telling part in many of those results and deserves respect for that. He is not, perhaps, as 'box office' as Finn, whose extra pace renders him such an exciting sight, but reliability and consistency are just as valuable qualities and Bresnan fulfils the role, with bat and ball, that this team require. Finn may be frustrated for some time yet.

"I prefer being called a lucky charm to being called a mascot," Bresnan said afterwards. "Mascots dress in silly outfits and do flick-flacks on the side of the pitch.

"I thought I may as well have left my pads in the car at the start of the day. West Indies bowled really well and all credit to them. It wasn't what we expected with the bat, but we've come back strong with the ball. To get them 60 for six on that wicket is a phenomenal effort.

"I suppose I didn't have the best of games at Lord's. I do like to make a contribution in whatever capacity I can and I didn't really do that at Lord's. But I feel I've made a decent contribution here and made a difference to this game."

There is only one cloud on the horizon for England. Bresnan's Yorkshire colleague, Jonny Bairstow, endured a less happy day and appeared to be exposed by the pace and hostility of Kemar Roach. It was not so much the dismissal - Bairstow, hopping in anticipation of a short ball, spooned a simple catch off the leading edge to mid-on - that caused the concern, but the way in which he had played the previous deliveries. One had struck him on the glove; another on the chest. Bairstow looked deeply uncomfortable.

It is too early to jump to conclusions about Bairstow's ability at this level. This only his second Test, an experience sure to fill even the calmest head with nerves. More pertinently, he was also up against a fine and unusual bowler. Roach, with his fast arm and skiddy delivery, has troubled the likes of Ricky Ponting in the past. It is no disgrace to take time to adjust to such a proposition. Bairstow is only 22. He has time on his side.

But this pitch was slow. Certainly, if he is to enjoy a long Test career, he will come up against quicker bowlers on quicker wickets. You can be sure that, across the world, his discomfort will have been noted by Dale Steyn, Morne Morkel and co. If Bairstow plays in the series against South Africa, he is sure to be tested by the short ball.

It would be simplistic to state that Bairstow is simply not used to bowlers of Roach's pace. He will have played with and against plenty of quick bowlers in county cricket over the last few years - Finn, Stuart Meaker, Steve Harmison, Sajid Mahmood, Tymal Mills, Graeme Napier, Chris Tremlett et al - but there have been whispers, even among members of the England Performance Programme, about his ability to deal with the short ball for a while. Indeed, only a few weeks ago he was troubled and then dismissed by Mills - a left-arm bowler of unusual pace - in the Championship match against Essex. Bairstow has scored only five first-class centuries and just two have come in the top division of the County Championship.

It is worth remembering that Bairstow was not England's first choice in this series. Had Ravi Bopara been fit, he would have played. But England, having moved on from Eoin Morgan and unsure whether James Taylor was ready, instead took a chance on Bairstow largely due to his encouraging displays in limited-overs internationals.

There is some logic in that selection. Bairstow has shown the England management that he has the character to thrive on the big occasion and fit in with the team environment. Those are important factors. It was a gamble, though. Test cricket has a habit of exposing even the smallest weakness and Roach's spell hinted that this opportunity may have come just a little early in Bairstow's career.