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LIVE: West Indies v England, 1st Test, Day 4

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Gary Ballance batted through the fourth morning of the first Test as England extended their lead over West Indies to 328 runs.

England lost just one wicket during the session, which yielded 108 runs, when Joe Root dragged Jason Holder onto his stumps to end a 114-run partnership.

A busy Ben Stokes then joined Ballance, unbeaten on 92, in a brisk 50-run stand to ensure England were in the perfect position to choose their moment to declare later in the day.

Live scorecard / Live ball-by-ball commentary

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Morning session

5.00pm - LUNCH! England 224/4; Ballance 92 Stokes 33 - That was exactly ther type of session England were after first up. They lost just the one wicket, Root, and added 108 runs with the minimum of fuss. That takes the lead to 328 and sets the platform for some hitting after lunch. Alastair Cook must simply decide when to call his players off.

4.49pm - Ballance pushes the ball down the ground and that is the 50-run partnership with Stokes from 70 balls. Good stuff from these two.

4.40pm - Stokes and Ballance both crash boundaries as the scoreboard continues to tick along. It is good batting rather than a case of England looking to take the attack to West Indies. The lead is over 300 and any fireworks can be saved until after lunch in 20 minutes.

4.26pm - Runs are coming quickly for Stokes although his latest boundary is from a genuine edge off Holder through the slips. He has 19 from 18 balls. West Indies skipper Denesh Ramdin responds by reinforcing his cordon.

4.15pm - Ben Stokes gets off the mark with a reverse-swept four off Benn. So good was the shot he did it again at the end of the over for the same result.

4.08pm - REVIEW! Benn wants a review of an lbw shout against Ballance as he attempted a sweep. The TV replays show the ball hit Ballance outside off and was going over the top - not that Benn can believe it. He was convinced.

3.59pm - WICKET! Root b Holder 59; Eng 166/4 - Root plays on for the second time in the match. A curious-looking dismissal as he gets a defensive blade on the ball, but he plays it a tad too late and the ball hits the ground and goes back onto his stumps. There ends a very important stand of 114 runs that has set the game up for England.

3.55pm - Ballance's confidence is growing as he lifts Benn over midwicket for a big six. A smart shot as he hits with the spin and the breeze to an area left vacant. It was low on risk and high on reward. Good shots those!

3.46pm - CENTURY PARTNERSHIP! Root edges a drive at Benn. The ball flies wide of first slip though and away for a boundary that brings up the 100-run stand between these two Yorkshireman from 178 balls. Steadying stuff.

3.39pm - FIFTY! Root (68b 4x4 1x6) - Benn drops short and Root rocks onto the back foot and pulls away for a couple to take him to his second fifty of the match.

3.36pm - We have spin. Sulieman Benn into the attack.

3.26pm - Ballance drills another drive. This one goes to the rope via point as Roach tries to maintain that full length but is too wide. Root follows it with two even better shots in the next over from Taylor.

3.17pm - FIFTY! Ballance (124b 7x4 0x6) - And now Ballance is into the fifties. He drives his seventh boundary through the covers to the rope before walking down the pitch and waving his bat to his team-mates.

3.15pm - Joe Root clips a couple of threes away of Taylor and Kemar Roach to get himself going. He joins Ballance in the forties.

3.04pm - We have had our first over of the day and Gary Ballance finishes it with a late cut for four off Jerome Taylor. He was into position quickly.

Pre-play news

2.53pm - The usual morning shower breezed over the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium this morning and then disappeared off into the distance. We'll start on time, but again there may be a little bit in the wicket early.

The hosts have done well with the ball in the morning so far in this match. They've looked to keep it full and get a bit of swing. England may need to be watchful before they worry about building that lead.

2.40pm - The question that is likely to run through the day is how long do England need to try and bowl West Indies out on a wicket that has largely been unresponsive. West Indies could, of course, remove any debate by skittling England. That scenario aside you assume Cook will allow himself a minimum of four sessions to take the 10 wickets required. We shall see.

2.30pm - We are back for the penultimate day of this absorbing Test match and we can expect the game to be set up at some point before stumps.

England will look to bat themselves into a position where captain Alastair Cook can decide how long he needs to try and bowl West Indies out, while the hosts will look to try and knock England over and give themselves a shot at a realistic chase.

With England 220 runs ahead, and with seven wickets in hand, it is they who hold all the aces at the moment.


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