Just the single from that Permaul over but with two slips and a gully in for Taylor, the purposeful Root clips the paceman for two off his pads, and is then alert to deflect one away when a defensive shot threatens to spin back towards the stumps.

Olly Rex: Hales' upturn in form in First Class cricket has coincided with a move to number three. Maybe a Test match player, but no opener.

Graeme Swann
Ex-England spinner on BBC Test Match Special

"I think what we are going to see from Permaul is a few rubbish ones but he has got a good ball in him, he puts a lot of revs on it."

Callum Johnstone: Re Pat (16:53) I have tickets to Lord's fourth day against NZ and I'm already planning what to do in the afternoon! It won't be in NW8!

The diminutive left-arm spinner Permaul, who should really have had Cook caught for 22, will resume after lunch.

Image source, Reuters

The result of our vote is in and it is fairly clear that the man you want to open the innings for England is Yorkshire left-hander Adam Lyth, who has polled 57.1%. The current incumbent, poor old Trotty, only mustered 2.9%.

Mike Ball: Anyone else think England should open with Hales and Lyth against New Zealand? Cook 3, Ballance 4, Root 5. Pretty good top 5.

(We were thinking of only one new opener rather than two Mike!)

Thanks JG. Still time to vote in our England opener poll on the right hand side of your screens. I always thought young Joe would be at the top of the order for years in the mould of Michael Atherton, but he seems to be very happy at four, and often gets to the crease very early in the innings in any case.

Right, time for me to leave you and hand you back to Jamie Lillywhite for the afternoon session.

Jay: I don't understand where the urge to ruin a non-opener's confidence by sending him to open comes from. Just get Lyth in.

Gareth Sweet: Hales has started the season in sensational form and should get the nod to replace Trott for the New Zealand Tests.

Tim Chesworth: Nick Compton should be given another chance to open. Didn't really do a lot to deserve being dropped when he was in the team.

BBC Radio Test Match Special

Image source, @BBCTMS

Over lunch, TMS will be interviewing musician, entrepreneur and chef - and former Dragons's Den contestant - Levi Roots. You can listen to that right now.

As you will hopefully be able to see on the right side of your page, or in your 'Vote' tab if you're reading on mobile, we've created a vote for you. We're asking you who should be opening with Alastair Cook when England take on New Zealand later this month: should it be Jonathan Trott, Adam Lyth, Alex Hales, Gary Ballance or someone else entirely?

Take your pick, and we'll publish the results in half an hour or so.

So, with England three wickets down, you'd have to say that's West Indies' session. They've bowled with decent pace and it's Jason Holder, who was carried off the field in the last Test match, who has done most of the damage.

The headline news of that session from England's point of view was a third duck of the series for Jonathan Trott, whose place in the side now looks very precarious. Gary Ballance suffered a disappointingly early exit for a man with plenty of runs under his belt recently, but Alastair Cook and Joe Root show every sign of continuing their good form and it is they who will be charged with rebuilding the England innings after lunch.

Image source, AFP

Geoffrey Boycott
Ex-England batsman on BBC Test Match Special

"Outside of Jimmy Anderson's spell in the last match this has been the best cricket of the series for me. West Indies have come out and done something they haven't been able to, they have bowled some really good balls at pace and made England struggle.

"Trott can't open the batting like that, if you're moving forward to pace you're in trouble, and Bell's was a 'gimme' wicket. But Cook has played beautifully, his judgement, footwork. Joe Root looks a man possessed with confidence and form."

Image source, AFP

England 71-3 (25 overs) after winning the toss

Batsmen: Cook 31 from 83 balls, Root 19 from 16

Fall of wickets: 0-1 (Trott 0), 38-2 (Ballance 18), 38-3 (Bell 0)

Bowling figures: Taylor 7-4-17-0, Gabriel 4-1-6-1, Holder 6-1-15-2, Samuels 6-1-18-0, Permaul 2-0-15-0

Match scorecard

Click the live audio icon at the top of the page for Test Match Special commentary

Taylor appears to be deliberately bowling well wide of the off stump at Cook today, dangling the carrot under the England batsman's nose. But Cook, an abstemious opener at his best, is just letting them go at the moment, resisting temptation. So Taylor straightens up and Cook flicks him off his toes down to the fine-leg fence. And with that, we lunch.

Aashish: Agree with 16:49 John Fryer - how the third umpire couldn't see the fingers under the ball and lack of dust is beyond me - poor.

Geoffrey Boycott
Ex-England batsman on BBC Test Match Special

"There is a disenchantment with their own team from West Indies supporters. They still talk cricket but because their team has been weak they talk with so much disappointment. Here they have had some of the greatest names in world cricket but now they think where's the Marshall and the Garner, Greenidge and Haynes? Now they say, we haven't got anybody, Geoffrey."

More from Permaul, who was perhaps unlucky in his last over. The Guyanese left-armer - coming round the wicket to Root - just gets a little straight and the England batsman sweeps him fine for four. Then he drops far too short and Root skips back in his crease and clobbers him down to the mid-on boundary.

Jim: On the train home from Cardiff. No more wickets before Crewe please. Only at Cwmbran.