England make positive start

Marcus Trescothick, on his return to test cricket, proved just how vital he is to the England team by hitting a trademark century, his fourteenth in Test cricket, off of 171 balls in a day that favoured the home side. Trescothick’s innings ended shortly after tea but Alistair Cook and Kevin Pietersen continued to build momentum as the day wore on, leaving England in a dominant position at 318 for three at stumps.

Trescothick used his crease superbly against the toiling Sri Lankan bowling attack, of which only two, Muttiah Muralitharan and Farveez Maharoof, managed to make inroads into the determined English batting lineup. He also smashed the wide-eyed off-spinner into the stands for a maximum with a slog-sweep after lunch, bringing back memories of the world-class Trescothick that was missed during England’s tour of the sub-continent.

However, it wasn’t dream-like strokeplay throughout the opener’s innings; he was lucky to survive a close LBW appeal made by Muttiah Muralitharan on 28, a few edges also didn’t go to hand. Nevertheless, Trescothick was content in leaving the deliveries outside off-stump early on whilst Andrew Strauss made the headway for the successful opening partnership.

Strauss drove the seamers expertly throughout the first session and looked confident – poised to move onto a century. However, having been tied down slightly by Muralitharan in the run-up to lunch, Strauss prodded at one of the off-spinner’s deliveries in the last over before the interval and edged a low chance to Jayawardene who clung on well to a difficult chance.

At the end of the morning session, with England’s captain Andrew Flintoff having won the toss and selected to bat, the home side were in the ascendancy at 86 for the loss of just one wicket. It was left up to the middle order to press home the advantage and, with the relatively inexperienced Alistair Cook due in after Lunch, Sri Lanka had a chance of turning the day around – especially with their key bowler turning the ball significantly on a good first-day track that the batsmen seemed to enjoy.

After Lunch, despite the hope that was created by the late exit of Strauss, the seamers did not bowl enough deliveries on a good line and length to trouble the English batsmen, Cook and Trescothick.

Maharoof was inaccurate in his afternoon spell and got thrashed by Trescothick when he, commonly, strayed down the leg-side bowling around the wicket. Cook also began well, proving to be an excellent foil to Trescothick’s strokeplay that, before lunch, was top notch but, after the interval, was incredible.

Muralitharan continued to be the visitors’ most threatening player and almost got Cook out with a direct hit from mid-on. He also gave umpire Rudi Koertzen something to think about with his bowling; Trescothick was lucky to survive the appeals. Cook was also another name that would have appeared on the rapidly lengthening list of Muralitharan’s victims had it not been for a slice of fortune when he edged a top-spinning delivery through the gap between Sangakkara and Jayawardene.

Trescothick did not hesitate to bring up his century after tea but advanced his score by just 6 more runs when Muralitharan finally got the breakthrough – the off-spinner’s delivery turned sharply across the left-hander and took the edge, providing Jayawardene, at slip, with another low catch.

Trescothick departed with slightly more than 28 scheduled overs left to play before stumps and gave Cook the chance to shine in the limelight.

Chaminda Vaas, who hadn’t troubled the English batsmen since he found a smidgeon of seam-movement in the morning, was brought back into the attack, but the number three looked comfortable as he played one of the shots of the day: a back-foot on-drive from an away-swinging delivery outside his off-stump.

Cook and his new partner, Pietersen, continued to drive and cut their way through the remaining overs that Sri Lanka had with the old ball, in the process making captain Jayawardene employ more defensive strategies as the end of the day drew nearer. Pietersen, in particular, played Muralitharan confidently, advancing down the pitch to meet the length-deliveries.

With nine overs remaining before stumps, the Sri Lankans took the new ball and, with its arrival, came the downfall of Cook. However, Pietersen was lucky to still be there when Cook departed as, three balls before Cook’s dismissal, Maharoof managed to get Pietersen out but off of a no-ball. A thin edge was all it needed, on the other hand, to send Cook, having made 89, back to the pavilion to a deserved ovation.

The Sri Lankans will rue the no-ball that kept Pietersen at the crease and, with a strong, punishing middle-order still to come, early wickets tomorrow are a necessity if the visitors are to confine England to 450. However, with a seam attack that is, at best, military medium, that task may well prove to be beyond Sri Lanka.

England 318-3
Marcus Trescothick 106, Alistair Cook 89.
Muttiah Muralitharan 2/69, Farveez Maharoof 1/94