Stokes wants to put his body on the line all the time: Collingwood

Interim coach Paul Collingwood was mighty pleased with the way England's bowling unit performed on day three of the first Test against West Indies in Antigua. England could only manage five wickets but conceded just 171 runs in 90.1 overs. Nkrumah Bonner crafted 123 off 355 deliveries and helped West Indies take a first-innings lead of 62 runs, with still one wicket to spare.

"I thought that was probably one of the best efforts I've seen in an England shirt in Test cricket. To go for just 170 runs and take five wickets on that pitch today was a pretty good effort. The fitness levels the guys showed and their attitude in the field was exceptional. It was hard work out there on a docile pitch," said Collingwood. 

"All of us expected it to break up a bit more than it has done and sometimes you can look at the scoreboard and see you haven't bowled them out but I thought the attitude was superb. You cannot fault them."

On top of that, England also lost the services of their tearaway paceman Mark Wood who had to leave the field after bowling just five overs on day three with heavy strapping on his right elbow. And, in his absence, ace allrounder Ben Stokes stepped up and sent down 28 overs. The right-arm paceman gave away only 42 runs and also took two crucial wickets of Shamarh Brooks and Jason Holder.

"Wood is pretty sore at the moment. We'll get anti-inflammatories in him and assess him overnight to see if he's available for the second innings. You need guys who can bowl 90 plus miles per hour and can reverse swing the ball. It will be disappointing if he's not involved but we'll have to wait and see.

"It's fair to say Ben Stokes declared himself fit to bowl. None of us expected that many overs out of him but, Ben being Ben, he went out there and felt great and he's done everything he can to get fit. He showed today what a warrior he is. 

"As much as you tell him not to bowl and to be careful, he's proven that the work that he's done over the last few weeks to get his body right has been exceptional. He wants to put his body on the line all the time. He loves playing for England and wants to win games."

Collingwood was also impressed with the way Jack Leach has gone about his business in this Test. The left-arm spinner has bowled 43 overs, giving away 79 runs and also taking the wicket of Joshua Da Silva. "He went superbly. If Jack bowls like that on wickets that are more responsive then he's going to take wickets.

"He was accurate, he had dip on the ball, his energy, everything he gave was really good. The pitch was turning pretty much nil. On pitches that aren't doing anything you want him to do a holding role and he played that role really well.

"He's been great around the dressing room. We've tried to give people more responsibility and become leaders - he's had a voice and he's enjoyed that. He's got a smile on his face, he's enjoying his cricket and he's taken his performances out into the middle, so it's a really good start."