RAVI BOPARA kept his cool to get England over the line at last for just their second victory in 15 matches this winter.

In his 101st one-day international, he saw the job through for a nervy threewicket win which levelled the series against West Indies at 1- 1 with one to play.

In pursuit of only 159 all out on an awkward surface at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium, after debutant spinner Stephen Parry had taken three for 32, England’s reply found major trouble in running and uncomfortable reminders of the winter’s previous mishaps as they lost two wickets for one run and then three for two.

Amid the chaos, though, Bopara emerged at number seven – in an unbroken stand of 58 with his captain Stuart Broad – to prove England can close a deal after all.

Bopara has, statistically, played many more significant innings. But in a time and place, his unbeaten 38 here was utterly invaluable as England prevailed with more than five overs to spare.

There was a depressing familiarity to much which preceded it, in a match England should have won much more easily.

Moeen Ali picked out deep square-leg with an aerial pull at Ravi Rampaul, and Luke Wright then missed three successive balls from Sunil Narine – the last of which, a doosra, bowled him off-stump for a duck.

Narine had only four overs of his entitlement left, with England still in heartening shape. But they soon lurched to 89 for six.

Michael Lumb was pinned lbw on the back foot by Nikita Miller, and Joe Root poked a Dwayne Bravo slower ball back for a return catch.

Then Jos Buttler put the West Indies captain on a hattrick when he gloved a short ball over his shoulder to the wicketkeeper, and Ben Stokes looped a bat-pad catch up to Denesh Ramdin too off Miller.

Bopara and Tim Bresnan hinted at revival, until the latter was run out having pushed an attempted single to midwicket but set off on his own as the throw came in from Bravo.

It was therefore not until Broad came in, and rode his luck – dropped twice in three balls on one and three off Rampaul, at long leg and then slip – that England gradually became favourites again.

For West Indies, Lendl Simmons had hit his second successive half-century and shared two 50 stands as he made 70.

But after he was sixth out, the second of six wickets to fall for 26 runs, West Indies faltered terminally.