‘A lot of fun' – Harry Brook's England reign starts with West Indies whitewash
Harry Brook is having a 'hell of a lot of fun' as England captain after his first series in full-time charge of the white-ball sides ended in a 3-0 clean sweep of the West Indies.
England claimed their first ODI series whitewash in three years – when they beat the Netherlands by an identical scoreline – after prevailing by seven wickets in a one-sided contest at the Oval.
Jamie Smith's explosive 64 from 28 balls broke the back of a revised chase of 246 from 40 overs, with Brook's predecessor as skipper Jos Buttler getting them home with an unbeaten 41 off 20 deliveries.
English white-ball cricket was in the doldrums after a dreadful Champions Trophy campaign which led to Buttler's resignation as skipper earlier this year but Brook has started on the right track.
'It's a hell of a lot of fun when you're enjoying it with a lot of mates,' said Brook, who will now turn his attention to the three-match T20 series that starts on Friday in Chester-le-Street.
'I think we've got such a good side. The depth in batting is amazing and then we've got a lot of skilful bowlers as well. I'm really looking forward to the future and seeing how it goes.'
England were as dominant at Edgbaston last week as they were on Tuesday but they were off the boil at Sophia Gardens on Sunday, dropping four catches and fluffing two run-outs in a ragged fielding display.
Only an all-time great 166 not out from Joe Root got them out of jail but Brook believes how close-knit the group are can be emphasised by their reaction to how they fielded in Cardiff.
'I don't feel like we really deserved that win,' he reflected. 'Our fielding was a little bit sloppy. A few lads spoke up about it and said it wasn't good enough, which I think is a really good sign.
'But because we are so tight as a group, we've managed to scrape a victory there. Obviously, having Joe Root in your side is always a big help.'
One of the big calls ahead of this series was Smith's promotion to open alongside Ben Duckett. The pair made ducks in Cardiff but rebounded with half-centuries as Duckett contributed 58 off 46 balls.
Smith, who replaced Phil Salt as opener, averaged 17.63 after his first dozen ODI innings with a best of 49 but demonstrated the class that has made him an automatic selection for England's Test side.
'He's gone out there and and played extremely well, but he's not a slogger,' Brook added. 'He's playing proper shots, he's putting their bad balls away and he's putting them under immense pressure.
'We've seen in Test cricket how good he is. He knows how to bat. We want batters that can put their best balls under pressure, manipulate the field, and score big runs.
'He's going to have a good go at it at the top in one-day cricket and I think everybody's excited to see how he goes.'
The Windies had recovered from 28 for three and 154 for seven to post 251 for nine after arriving to the ground late because of traffic which – combined with a 95-minute rain delay – meant a reduced game.
Adil Rashid was the pick of the England bowlers with three for 40, with Brook quick to hail his evergreen Yorkshire team-mate.
'Rash has got so much skill,' Brook added. 'He's a very wily bowler. He's he's been around the block for a while, and he keeps on getting better and better.'
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