Phil Salt century and Harry Brook cameo power

Of course no run chase, not even one this brilliant, can make up for the travails of recent months. But these heady final overs, and the sheer excitement about seeing Salt and Brook play with undiluted verve, restored something that has been so amiss from English white-ball cricket in recent months: a sense of fun.

Perhaps the sheer magnitude of England’s task – they had only successfully chased more in one previous T20, against South Africa in the 2016 T20 World Cup – brought with it a certain sense of clarity.

“It certainly narrows the mind as to what you need to do,” Salt said. “We spoke in the middle about trying to leave 60 or 70 off the last five – we felt that was something we could do.

“There is no more special feeling than walking off a ground in an England shirt, winning the game.” Especially not when the team so craves a win.

Aged 27, Salt has always remained locked-out of England’s first-choice white-ball sides: a victim of the understandable reluctance to move on from the generation who transformed limited-overs cricket. No longer. After encouraging performances throughout the white-ball tour to the Caribbean, this innings was affirmation of Salt’s suitability to the international stage: the clean-striking; the ability to maintain his balance in his shot; the smartness to pick his bowler and his shot.

On a sweltering day, Salt’s stamina was as impressive. In the 19^th over, already past his century, he crunched Alzarri Joseph over long on for his ninth six; all were in the arc between deep midwicket and long off. While Salt has a fine scoop, he recognised that, on a pitch conducive to hitting through the line of the ball, he should trust in his power and timing.

Salt’s ability to start an innings in such a way has not been in doubt. But what has been is Salt’s ability to finish one. Yet after lifting England to 73-0 off the Powerplay, Salt kept the target in reach – if only just about – while his team-mates stumbled. Then, in between regular drinks to remain hydrated in the heat, Salt crashed 28 off the last nine balls. In the final over, while Brook was marmalising Russell, Salt still had the fitness to scamper back for a two to keep his partner on strike.

“He’s got such great intent from ball one,” said captain Jos Buttler, whose 51 set-up the chase. “That’s something we’ve asked him to do and he’s always played that way. But for him to go on and bat through, it’s something we’ve spoken about as a team.”

These undefeated 109 runs will also make Salt significantly richer. The next Indian Premier League auction is on Tuesday, the day of the fourth T20. Several of the 10 franchises might now have designs on Salt now bringing his blistering hitting to their colours too.

Salt’s nine sixes meant that, for the first time this series, England won the battle of the sixes. After plundering 14 in the series opener and another 13 in the second game in Grenada on Thursday, West Indies cleared the ropes 16 times. But after mustering 14 sixes across the first two T20Is, England launched 18 in Grenada.

West Indies’ own batting gave no hint that their run of victories might be ending. Even losing both openers – including Kyle Mayers to a terrific delivery from the returning Reece Topley – within the first nine balls merely delayed England’s pain. Nicholas Pooran’s regal 82 particularly showed off his penchant for attacking leg spin, launching Adil Rashid over square leg twice in three balls in the 18^th over.

England’s plight seemed to be embodied by the unsalutary start to the 19^th over. Attempting a yorker, Sam Curran speared the ball too wide; it then went between Buttler’s legs for five wides. In one of the largest exporters of the spice in the world, this was the wrong sort of nutmeg.

But such early toil proved merely the prelude to England’s stunning chase. Should better days lie ahead – including when England return to the Caribbean for next year’s T20 World Cup – Buttler and head coach Matthew Mott will have happy cause to recall this heady afternoon in Grenada.