West Indies' bold attempt to chase a world-record 455 to win against England in the third Test at Old Trafford gave the cricket viewing public a glimpse of what might have been. The chase fell a valiant 60 runs short and it was the first time in the series that the tourists showed some courage. Had they been this gutsy at the beginning, maybe the Test series would have been less one-sided.

The West Indies were outplayed in the first Test at Lords and were destroyed in the second clash at Headingley by an innings and 283 runs. The absence of retired ex-captain Brian Lara has been a massive blow and their batting order is obviously much weaker without him. However, his retirement says much more about the state of  West Indian cricket than it does about him.

Without Lara, the Windies have rarely looked like they can bat for a full 90-over day. Without him in the side, it is hard to see where there next victory will come from. The loss of big players was compounded when Ramnaresh Sarwan was ruled out of the remainder the series after injuring his shoulder on the first day at Headingley. However, the tourists suffered a bigger loss…a loss of desire.

'Never before have I witnessed a series where one side has looked like they didn’t care less about the result'

Never before have I witnessed a series where one side has looked like they didn’t care less about the result. The resistance offered by Shivnarine Chanderpaul on the final day was refreshing in a contest where his team-mates, Darren Sammy aside, seemed so indifferent.

Chief culprit is Chris Gayle. I have heard the opening batsman called relaxed, laid-back and cool but I think the best way to describe him is apathetic. He looks like he doesn’t care. He fields lazily, runs a single like he is strolling in the park and even bowls no balls from a three-step run-up.

The third Test was simply a case of too little, too late. It was the first time in the series that the visitors went down fighting and they have fully deserved to lose.