England vs West Indies 2017: Five areas where the hosts must work on

England has stooped to another low courtesy of their sensational and historic Test defeat against West Indies at Headingley. Although the Test was dragged for five days, it was evident that on most parts, the visitors had an upper hand while the hosts were outplayed convincingly.

This loss has once again brought to limelight the gaping holes existing in England's team. The lack of young talent and rusty performances from the experienced ones has cost the team dearly. England somehow managed to keep the under-confident and under-skilled South Africans at the bay, but as West Indies have shown, England may struggle heavily in the upcoming Ashes.

Introspection has become the need of the hour for England cricket and to overcome the pain of this humiliating defeat, they must eliminate their weaknesses. Here are five areas that are proving to be the Achilles heel for the team.

#5 Solve the openers' debacle

Andrew Stauss' shoes seem to be too big to fill for English cricket. Since his retirement in 2012, 13 players have opened the innings for England along with Alastair Cook but nobody has played more than 12 Tests.

Mark Stoneman's half-century in the second Test must have ignited hope in the English camp as, during his knock of 52, he looked confident, fluent and most importantly set for a long inning.

However, his scores in three innings so far are 8, 19, and 52. This half-century may look promising but it hasn't solved the problem. England need is consistency at the top of the order - something which has become an extremely rare trait.

Cook scored a crisp 243 runs in the first Test, but that century came after 16 innings. Although still solid, the left-handed opener is now looking exhausted and on several occasions was rusty.

Hence, England must find a consistent and strong opening partner for Cook who will keep things tidy at the top of the order. Haseeb Hameed, Alex Hales and Keaton Jennings have had their opportunities but their failures have increased the dark clouds over England cricket.

#4 Find a helping hand for Joe Root in the middle order

Can Malan become a pillar of the middle order

Currently, England's middle order is all about Joe Root. The skipper is the foreward, body, and epilogue of the story for the middle order. His prolific run-making and consistent batting have overshadowed the gaping holes that exist in the middle order.

Also, the trio of Jonny Bairstow, Ben Stokes, and Moeen Ali have recused the team on too many occasions. The sight of one among the three walking at the crease in a critical situation and then steering the home to normalcy has become extremely common.

Except for Joe Root, there is nothing of substantial quality in the middle order and that is hurting the English team. The current pallbearers Tom Westley and Dawid Malan have shone in bits and parts but have failed to create a lasting impression.

Garry Ballance was offered an extended run but he too faded away with time. Ben Duckett's inclusion brought fresh air in the middle order, but in seven innings, he managed to get only one score of fifty.

Malan has scored two fifties in his last three innings and currently, he is the best bait for Root and Co. He deserves some chances as he has behind him an experience of more than 140 first-class games.

However, the future seems bleak for Westley who in his four Test appearances has made scores of 25, 59, 29, 9, 8, 3, and 8. But the question is, if not Westley then who?

#3 Fielding standards

Feilding was the key reason for England's downfall in Headlingly

The Headingley Test saw one of the most dramatic comebacks in Test cricket, and it also saw some of the most pathetic fielding efforts. Both teams had their share of miseries in fielding, but it will be the home team who will be feeling the heat the most as they ended up losing the game.

In the fourth innings, Kraigg Brathwaite was dropped on 4 and then on 29 by Cook and Broad respectively. He went on to make 95 runs and was also part of the 144 run partnership that anchored the historic chase.

Jermaine Blackwood - who delivered the final punch in the game was also dropped by Ben Stokes. He was also dropped by Moeen Ali at mid-on in the first innings. He made 49 runs in that innings.

The abysmal fielding has added to England's long list of miseries and like Headlingly, it has resulted in being the difference between a win and a loss.

The slip catching, in particular, needs to be improved. With new faces joining the Test unit, the work of the team management has become expansive. The youngsters must be taught the virtues of slip fielding as catches dropped in this region haunt teams for ages.

#2 The saga of the third pacer

Woakes was good in bits and parts but not as an overall package

When there is a pace bowling pair of James Anderson and Stuart Board available along with the likes of Ben Stokes to back it up, it is often easy to stamp it as a 'complete bowling attack'. The presence of these three men creates a sense of a false security and makes the prospect of a genuine third pacer look boring and unimportant.

England has made the same mistake. They have overlooked their third pacer and it has cost them heavily. Chris Woakes averages 30.60 in Tests and claims a wicket every 59 balls. His strike rate is similar to that of Anderson (56.4) and Broad (57.4) but what the numbers don't reveal is Woakes' failure to create the impact which his other partners often do.

Toby Roland-Jones had a sterling Test debut at Oval as he sent back four South African top order batsman in his first spell. He was effective against West Indies in the first Test as well, but again, Woakes was favoured over him.

The bowling department of England has close to 1000 Test wickets courtesy of Anderson- Broad. But the focus on these two has made the third pacer an Achilles heel. To gain supremacy in Tests, England must have a third-pacer who is able to support Anderson - Broad effectively and can also weave magic by his own.

#1 An attacking spinner

Moeen Ali's spin bowling has its limits

Moeen Ali's emergence as an all-rounder has created a false hope for England. Ali's spin bowling is effective but the question is whether it is match-winning.

Against South Africa, a team that is already having serious issues against spinning deliveries, Ali reaped heavy success. His off-breaks certainly have the venom and they can trouble the batsmen but, he is far from being a genuine spinner who can be trusted upon to win matches.

His performances in the Test series against India exhibited his limits. In four Tests he picked up only ten wickets and averaged 64.9 per wicket.

His lack of variations and inability to produce magic when the surface is unhelpful makes him an unreliable bowler in Test cricket. England cricket must find an attacking spinner who is able to trouble batsmen on any surface with his attacking lines or variations.