Sri Lanka encouraged by battling draw

Despite a final nerve-wracking session, the tourist had plenty to take away from the first Test as theyavoided a first defeat at Lord's since 1991

'It was a good team effort' - Mathews

Alastair Cook is a defensive captain. Angelo Mathews is a defensive captain. Put their teams together on a flat deck that saw three centuries and a double-hundred, and you have a draw. Right?

For much of day four and some of day five, the Test was headed for that fate, but of course, the cricket gods - purveyors of surprise and perennial makers of mischief - connived to make it so much better than that. The result did not change, but would-be-follicles in Marvan Atapattu's bald scalp will have turned grey, and even Mathews, who has overseen his share of heart-stoppers in his brief time at the helm, appeared shaken from the experience.

The only man in the Sri Lanka camp who seemed to have a grip on the situation, was the same guy who had smashed his own stumps with his bat in the first innings. England had begun raucous celebrations when ice-cold Nuwan Pradeep called for perhaps the most undeniably game-changing review since Galileo decided to take another look at the solar system. Then, when he survived the final ball, he and No. 10 Shaminda Eranga shook hands casually in the middle of the pitch. One can only guess from their body language at the contents of their conversation.

"Shame this match has to end now, no machang? We could have both hit hundreds otherwise."

Earlier, in the afternoon, Kumar Sangakkara had dead batted 31 deliveries in one stretch like he was facing backyard throw downs from his four-year-old daughter, then went over 100 deliveries without a boundary, with not so much as a grunt of frustration. He has gone some way to silencing critics in this match, raising his average significantly in England, where he has struggled in the past. In the second innings, he silenced supporters as well. So many cricket pundits and fans were predicting another ton on Twitter, it seemed almost inevitable that he would fall well short. He cut James Anderson back on to his stumps to truly set some panic in the visiting dressing room.

Later that same over, Lahiru Thirimanne took guard against Anderson. His five most recent international dismissals had all been effected by this one bowler. In seven innings before this against England, Anderson had claimed him four times. The bowler, by now, must feel he only needs to sneeze in Thirimanne's direction to claim his wicket. Thirimanne had been in good nick before the tour, but at present, he is like Superman in Lex Luthor's kryptonite jail cell.

Mathews had an outstanding Test as a batsman, hitting an almost surreptitious century in the first innings, after the crowd had used up all their fanfare on Sangakkara the previous day. Mathews traded in that pizzazz for passivity in the second dig, taking cover in his trench for 89 nerveless balls, before Anderson got the better of him as well. It was the kind of innings that should not hurt personal statistics, but it did. He now only averages 76 each time he comes to the crease as captain. He has undoubtedly grown as a leader, and he has become skilled at deflecting praise and indulging in less-than-enlightening captain-speak as well.

"I'm just trying to give my best to the team, regardless of being the captain or not," Mathews said of his own performance after the match. "I'm working really hard. I always see the big boys working hard. Kumar Sangakkara, Mahela, Dilshan - they all work hard. We've got some inspiration within the team. The senior guys are helping the junior guys as well. Especially in Test cricket, you need to make those changes and bat to the situations. You might need to change your game plan some time. You're always learning."

Tactically, he was somewhat weaker in this match. Given the Sri Lanka top order's recent struggles against swing and seam, Mathews' decision to field first was perhaps understandable, but it was undoubtedly the more conservative option. There were times on the second morning when Sri Lanka forgot their attack was not comprised of Michael Holding, Malcolm Marshall and Zeus. The "lightning-bolts" aimed at the batsmen's heads did some damage, and claimed a few lower-order wickets, but the short-ball plan cost the team over 200 runs as well.

Sri Lanka will have been encouraged by what they saw from Eranga and Pradeep, not so much with the bat, but with the new ball in hand. Eranga's fourth-day spell was perhaps the best in the game until Anderson's day-five burst, and Pradeep had been effective when the pitch took seam on day one.

Ultimately, Lord's threw up the kind of result that will satisfy both teams. England proved they can do something other than draw unbroken streams of ire, and Sri Lanka have avoided a first defeat at Lord's since 1991. Best of all, the finish had a meagre crowd talking, and no one was even mankaded.

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Cook heard Pradeep inside edge

While his team launched into a celebratory huddle, Alastair Cook knew what he had heard. The edge from Nuwan Pradeep into his pad, which Paul Reiffel missed, was big enough for Cook to pick it from slip. A few moments later the DRS confirmed that what, for seconds, was a Test victory had been snatched away from them.

Then, to add to the agony for the England captain, he watched the last ball of the Test fall agonisingly short of second slip. Stuart Broad fell to his knees and the slips stood motionless until the handshakes started.

"I didn't really move too far from my bar stool at first slip," Cook said. "I did think he nicked it but they everyone started saying it was two pads, so I kind of got excited. But it was a big noise."

He had a wry smile when it was put to him that the decision was vindication of the DRS, a system that England have always been a supporter of and that, last year, England were grateful for when it confirmed Brad Haddin out at Trent Bridge to secure a 14-run win. "Yeah," he said, with the hint of a laugh. "I've always been a big fan of it, it's to stop the howler and unfortunately that was a big inside edge. It's gutting to take at that time.

"But there was the lbw before the new ball from Chris Jordan which was overturned because it was the right decision. As players you want the right decision, even if it's not great at this precise moment in time when it's taken a Test win away but it was the right decision."

The fact England reached the final over needing two wickets for victory, which became one when Broad had Rangana Herath gloving down the leg side - although replays showed Herath's glove was off the bat - was testament to some tireless work either side of tea, sparked by James Anderson's removal of Mahela Jayawardene during a wonderful spell of reverse swing, and then a powerful burst with the new ball which reduced Sri Lanka from 159 for 2 with the game seemingly dead.

"At tea it looked quite a long way away but when you get so close and then get a decision which wins you a Test overturned it's quite hard to take," Cook said. "But it was a great Test, that's what it's about, to go all the way down to the wire and for both sides to leave nothing out there."

Cook showed invention in the field during the match, although largely in the final session after England waited desperately for the ball to reverse, but acknowledged that an 8-1 field which appeared after tea - including a circle of close catchers on the off side - had been the work of Anderson. "I wish I could take credit, but I can't." he said.

With England coming so close to victory there will inevitably be further debate of Cook's declaration which came before play on the final morning rather than late on the fourth day to give his quicks an early dart with new ball.

Cook said the batting collapse on Sunday afternoon - which left them 121 for 6, a lead of 243 - had cost them valuable time, meaning they could not accelerate until the closing overs. In the end, England made 59 runs in seven overs - which included Ballance reaching his maiden hundred with a six - although there remained an argument that the foot could have been put on the throttle when the lead passed 300.

"If you'd declared at 330-340 on that wicket it would have been a very fair chase," Cook said. "At 100 for 1 at lunch, 320 would have looked a very short total. The four wickets just after lunch cost us without shadow of a doubt and give Sri Lanka credit there. We tried to play positively to give us a chance of declaring that night but they made it difficult for us."

There were also 17 overs lost in the match due to slow over-rates, six of those on the day England were in the field throughout on Saturday, and speaking to Sky Sports Cook admitted that had not been ideal.

But he was delighted with the way his team played throughout the Test, their first outing in the format since the conclusion of the 5-0 Ashes whitewash in Australia. Only five players from Sydney remained, but most of the new or recalled players produced significant roles in the match.

"We've made quite a lot of the running in this Test. To lose the toss, be put in and make 580 you have a great chance," he said. "We were ahead throughout the game so can take a lot from that.

"We scored at a really good rate. If we'd gone at three runs an over we wouldn't have been in that position with a chance to win. Joe Root was outstanding with a double and Gary Ballance showed his class at international level, not many people have seen it and it will be great for his confidence from a tricky position at No. 3. All the new guys came in and made an impact."

It will be the same players travelling up to Headingley after an unchanged squad was confirmed, the playing XI plus Chris Woakes, but it is unlikely that Woakes will push himself into the side. There was a suggestion that Broad may have been suffering a niggle towards the end of the match, when he was replaced by Liam Plunkett for one over, but Cook said it had just been a hunch. It was a hunch that did not quite work.

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Plenty of ticks for England selectors

'We were ahead throughout the game' - Cook

There were six changes for the Lord's Test compared to the England side which took the field at the SCG in January. ESPNcricinfo assesses how each of them performed in the opening match of the series

Sam Robson

A tricky start for England's latest opener on his homeground. He edged to the keeper in the first innings, reaching for ball that travelled down the slope, and was then beaten by one holding its line in the second. Regardless of success at domestic level, the step up will bring challenges more often than not and it would be unfair to make snap judgements after two innings although to be troubled on both sides of the bat is a concern. Would be ideal, before the arrival of India, if he could settle himself with a useful score at Headingley.

Joe Root

His absence from the Test side only lasted one match and his double hundred has set up his summer beautifully. Continued a strong association with Lord's where he scored 180 against Australia last year and 71 against New Zealand. The tempo of his first innings was what stood out. Often in Australia he became static, unable to rotate the strike, but back down at No. 5 he seemed far more at ease. After a year of shuffling around the order, hopefully he has now found a permanent home especially after Gary Ballance's corresponding hundred at No.3. "It's obviously been quite a tough winter, from a team point of view and personally as well," Root said. "So to come back into the side and score a hundred meant a lot to me."

Moeen Ali

Moeen certainly did not look out his depth in the Test arena. Off the mark with a whip through square leg, the only nervous moment in his first innings was an edge through a vacant third slip. The rest of his stay was studded with wristy elegance, so much so that when he edged a loose drive to slip it came as a surprise. The second innings was brief, but action-packed: off the mark first ball with a lofted straight drive then bowled through the gate by a lovely response from Rangana Herath. The bowling was what you would expect, steady but without a huge amount of threat against batsmen who can play spin in their sleep. "I think he looks like someone who has already played 20 games," Paul Farbrace said. "I thought he looked at ease with the bat and with the ball he looks like a very quick learner. He has a great future."

Matt Prior

Lucky to be recalled? Maybe, but Prior took his opportunity although it was a successful return by a matter of inches when he escaped a mighty close lbw second ball. But after that, he played very much like the Prior of old, counter-attacking against a tiring attack on the first day although he will not have enjoyed being bounced out by Shaminda Eranga. With the gloves he was solid, the horrors of Perth forgotten, and generally coped well with the low bounce that made life tricky behind the stumps. "I've had a rough year but the three or four years before that I'd played some pretty good cricket and I know what I bring to the team," Prior said.

Chris Jordan

There is a vibrancy and exuberance about Jordan's cricket that is impossible not to admire. A wicket with his third ball in Test cricket would have settled any remaining nerves, but he does not appear to be the type of cricketer to be overwhelmed by an occasion. Three hard-earned scalps in the first innings were just rewards and his final spell of the match - 8-7-2-1 - was unstinting. The other side of his game was on show when he strode in with England 121 for 6 in the second innings. Ian Bell would have been proud of some of the off side drives he played during a sparky 35 which eased England's worries. "We've seen quite a lot of Jords in the one-day game, he's got a lot of skills," Alastair Cook said. "I love his attitude, he always wants to bowl. He's nagging me from second slip saying he needs to come on now, it's an infectious attitude and we haven't seen the best of him yet either."

Liam Plunkett

Match figures of 48-7-155-2 did not scream a successful return to Test cricket for Plunkett after a seven-year gap, but neither do they tell the full story of the effort he put in. It was a foreboding surface for anyone trying to extract life with short deliveries - a method of attack England were keen to take against the Sri Lankans - but Plunkett still had the strength and stamina to have the batsmen hopping at times with speeds in excess of 90mph. He may, occasionally, have forgotten the value of the pitch-up delivery and his yorker to remove Angelo Mathews in the first innings should be one to file away, but he should feel heartened heading to his new homeground for the second Test. "Liam has got one of the best engines I've seen, his pace pretty much stayed constant through the whole game," Cook said.

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Pradeep was confident - Mathews

Arnold: Cricket was the winner

Nuwan Pradeep approached the last five balls of the match with confidence, as he walked out to deny Stuart Broad and England, his captain Angelo Mathews revealed after the match.

Pradeep swayed away from a bouncer first ball - avoiding a reprise of his hit wicket from the first innings - then played and missed at a back-of-a-length delivery, and fended the third one away towards point.

Next ball - the penultimate delivery of the match - raised a raucous appeal from the hosts, and the batsman was given out by Paul Reiffel, only for the decision to be immediately reviewed. Replays showed Pradeep got a big inside edge, and lived on. The final delivery was edged to slip, but it only reached the fielder on the bounce.

"All Pradeep said to me was, 'Don't worry, I'm going to hold on. If they bowl short at me I'm just going to leave it'." Mathews said of his exchange with Sri Lanka's No. 11 before he went out to bat. "That was very encouraging from the tail-ender. I actually thought he did that exact thing. When they went for the lbw, we were not confident, because we couldn't see from behind. But he was pretty confident that he hit it, and thank God that he did."

Pradeep's lbw decision was the second piece of drama in the over after Rangana Herath gloved a short ball to the wicketkeeper - but his hand had already come off the bat handle. Herath did not wait for the umpire's decision to begin walking back to the pavilion.

"I guess Rangana wasn't aware of the rules," Mathews said. "It's a lesson learned. We all now know that if it hits your hand and it's off the bat you're not out."

Pradeep showed presence of mind to call for the review, even as England celebrated around him. "It wasn't the easiest time for Pradeep to go and bat, and to review the decision was also a brave effort. In that tense situation, your mind goes blank sometimes. It's always good to review it and luckily we used it. We hung in there."

Mathews was less enamoured by Sri Lanka's collapse either side of tea. The visitors had eight wickets in hand with 36 overs to play in the day, but lost three quickly to James Anderson's reverse swing, and were under immense pressure in the final session.

Mathews and Prasanna Jayawardene batted out 20 overs together, despite Jayawardene's severely bruised finger, before Rangana Herath faced 13 balls, until being dismissed.

"I thought we batted poorly after tea especially. The bowlers came and gave one last effort, and we fell for that. I thought Anderson bowled really well. Their seamers bowled hard and asked questions from our batters but we couldn't really handle it after tea. It shouldn't have got close.

"It was a great effort from our lower middle-order. Rangana Herath did well, and so did Prasanna, with a broken finger. He had had painkiller injections to keep going. It was a good effort in the end, but after tea we were too relaxed."

Alastair Cook faced some criticism for delaying his declaration, and Angelo Mathews said Sri Lanka were always unlikely to attempt chasing 390 on the final day.

"They could have declared earlier, maybe. Close to 400 runs to get on the last day is going to be a tough ask. The wicket was spinning a little bit, and it was playing up and down a little bit as well. We had to bat sensibly.

"We were going in a 50-50 mode. We wanted to bat till lunch, then tea, then see how we were. We were in a pretty bad situation after tea, and we couldn't do anything but go for the draw."

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A nod to the future for Root and England

This was one day at the start of a long summer but after a long and painful winter it was a day for England to enjoy the sunshine

Highlights: Root leads England revival with gritty 102*

We may never really know how many nervous twitches and glances there were in the England dressing room at 22 for 2. Mitchell Johnson was thousands of miles away and although the pitch was tinged with green and the new-ball swinging there was no reason to be overly alarmed.

Yet, whatever England do at the moment their recent history looms large. So when Alastair Cook chopped into his stumps, to end an uncertain stay, they were not marching convincingly into a new season of Test cricket. But some six hours later life as an England cricketer - and there were three at Lord's for which this was their first day - was beginning to look just a little bit rosier.

Not least for Joe Root who scored his second Test hundred in consecutive Lord's innings. The punch of the fist and the roar of delight could easily have been for what has gone before as much for what had just occurred.

Closing on 344 for 5 represented England's best first innings since The Oval last August - a turgid affair which led to James Faulkner attacking how England were playing their cricket - and is just nine short of anything they made in Australia. There could be no quibbling with the intent today as they kept in touch with four-an-over. When three wickets were down before lunch it was being readied as a criticism, but the urgency during the afternoon and evening session was their most convincing batting in a long time albeit against an attack that wearied as the day went on.

It should be a concern that the innings needed lifting from another uncertain beginning, but the fact it was achieved with some conviction and style should bring a sense of optimism that the rebuilding work is underway. That the recovery was largely staged by two players who did not finish the Ashes and another completely new to the Test team should gladden the hearts of suffering supporters. They may not agree with all the selections, but there were a few ticks for James Whitaker and company today.

Apart from the 180 at Lord's, the back-to-back Ashes was a searching experience for Root, not helped by the variety of roles he was asked to fill while still trying to establish the early days of his Test career. Opening in England became No. 6 to start with in Australia, but only for one Test when he was then shunted up to No. 3 after Jonathan Trott's departure. He did not survive the series, being dropped in Sydney.

He is in his 16th Test which has involved batting in six positions and although his one innings at No. 7 came due a nightwatchman, that is hardly the stability a young player needs. He has looked most at ease in the middle order; he made his nerveless 73 on debut against India in Nagpur and scored his first Test hundred from No. 5 against New Zealand at Headingley last year.

But if you had been assessing England's batting order for this match entirely logically - and with the assumption that Ian Bell gets what he wants to bat at No. 4 - then it pointed towards Root being No. 3 rather than Gary Ballance who does not bat that high for Yorkshire. Ballance did not look out of depth but was skittish during his stay as Sri Lanka preyed on a vulnerability outside off stump that was evident in the one-day series. All this was happening while Trott was making a hundred for Warwickshire's 2nd XI. He remains a vast hole to fill.

Being an opener by trade, it is surprising that Root has not seemed more at home at, or near the top of the order - notwithstanding the hundred against Australia which provides more than half his runs as an opener. The ability to rotate the strike, drop and run, to keep the board ticking comes far more easily in the middle order than it has done facing the new ball. Those skills were on evidence here; there were just two boundaries in his half-century but it did not feel as though his innings had come to standstill as some against Australia had done so.

Before this series Root stated his desire for the middle order although, after his hundred, played down a suggestion that he had declined the No.3 job. "Batting three or five, you can come in with a very similar score on the board," he said. "Whether they had an inkling I didn't want to bat there, or had suggested the middle order, maybe that had something to do with it."

Perhaps, at international level, he is more comfortable reacting to a situation rather than setting one up (he makes his one-day home in the middle order where the mindset can be similar). There is also the fact, which cannot be escaped, that batting at No. 5 will, most of the time, mean the newness of the ball has gone: in this innings, although the top three fell relatively cheaply, the ball was nearly 20 overs old when he arrived.

Still, for the Dukes ball in England, during the first session of a Test, that can still make the job tricky. He survived until lunch, which allowed England to catch their breath after a somewhat frantic first session, then played watchfully until tea. During the final session, as the zip from Sri Lanka's seamers dissipated, he skipped along at a jaunty rate with his second fifty taking 77 balls compared to the first which required 106.

A few moments later he got solidly behind the line of Nuwan Pradeep's final ball of the day then walked off as the sun started to set over Lord's. This was one day at the start of a long summer, after a long and painful winter. Tough days will follow, which could easily revive bad memories, but this was an occasion to think of the future.

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Banned umpire Shah officiates in the USA

Nadir Shah, the Bangladesh umpire who was banned for 10 years by the Bangladesh Cricket Board in March 2013 on charges of corruptions alleged by a TV sting operation, is now a standing umpire in the Southern California Cricket Association, a member league of the American Cricket Federation.

The sting, conducted in 2012, claimed to have "exposed" several first-class umpires from Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Pakistan who were allegedly willing to give decisions favouring players for a fee.

Shah, 50, stood in the final of last month's LA T20 Championship, which drew attention for the appearance of suspended former Bangladesh captain Mohammad Ashraful. The tournament was officially sanctioned by the USA Cricket Association with assurances that no unapproved international players would participate, but no such restrictions were in place regarding match officials.

Ashraful was invited by former Bangladesh player and current Los Angeles area resident Nazim Shirazi to take part in the competition as part of his team Pegasus CC. Shah is a cousin of Shirazi's and, like Ashraful, has continued to stay in Los Angeles beyond the completion of the LA T20 Championship. According to multiple sources, he is currently umpiring on a weekly basis in the SCCA.

Prior to Ashraful and Shah's appearances in Los Angeles, banned Pakistan legspinner Danish Kaneria played in multiple tournaments in Florida and Texas over the last year. Kaneria's appearance at the USA Friendship Cup T20 in March drew the attention of the Pakistan Cricket Board, which fined five of its contracted players for participating in an unapproved tournament without receiving no-objection certificates.

Shah officiated in 40 ODIs and three Twenty20 internationals before being banned by the BCB. He submitted a mercy plea to the BCB in June 2013 for a reduction in his 10-year ban. The request is still pending.

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Cockbain earns Gloucs battling draw

Gloucestershire 112 (Dunn 4-37) and 506 for 6 (Cockbain 151*, Klinger 120) drew with Surrey 626 for 6 dec. (Burns 199, Solanki 143, Roy 121*)
Scorecard

Ian Cockbain batted through the last day and made his first-class best score to lead Gloucestershire to a hugely improbable draw against Surrey.

Cockbain, the 27-year-old Liverpudlian, dug in for 15 minutes short of nine hours for 151 not out, only the third century of his career, to deny Surrey a win they would have expected to complete with five wickets needed on the final day for victory.

Tom Smith, technically a nightwatchman though he was promoted only two places to No. 7, also improved his career best with 80 and Will Gidman was unbeaten on 46 as Gloucestershire lost only one wicket on the final day of the to finish 506 for 6.

Michael Klinger had shown the way on Wednesday with 120 and Cockbain resumed in the morning on 48. He faced 35 balls, including playing out four maiden overs, before finally adding two singles to take him to a 189-ball half-century.

Smith, by that point, had hit five boundaries in the morning's play and quickly added another to move into the forties. Having reached 48, he too played out 16 successive dot balls before reaching 50 with a two off Chris Tremlett.

Cockbain pressed on to 83 and Smith 61 as they saw their side to lunch at 368 for 5, still 146 runs behind but in a far more encouraging position.

Cockbain reached his century with a two off Jade Dernbach in the sixth over after lunch and the total advanced to 400 two overs later with a single from the same batsman.

Both batsmen then settled for steady progress towards tea, with the only boundaries coming when Surrey captain Gary Wilson turned to the occasional medium pace of Jason Roy in the hope of inducing an error.

Smith's excellent innings was finally ended just before tea, Matt Dunn doing the damage with the new ball as Rory Burns took the catch at third slip. He had faced 221 balls and hit 11 fours. That put a stop to a magnificent and dogged partnership of 177 and it was 439 for 6 at tea, Cockbain 126 not out and Will Gidman off the mark with a four.

Another 75 were still needed to overcome the deficit but Cockbain pressed on and Gidman added fresh impetus. He struck another five fours and reached 28 with a run-a-ball strike rate before settling into a more patient approach against spinners Gareth Batty and Zafar Ansari.

Cockbain barely played a shot in anger at the other end, determined to see his vigil through, and was rewarded when a single off Batty took him to 150 from 419 balls.

The handshake came with Gloucestershire remarkably still eight runs in arrears - but they will care not a jot after a hard-earned five points having turned around a match they began by being bowled out for just 112.

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Sri Lanka wilt in whites

Sri Lanka arrived at Lord's on the cloud of confidence their limited-overs cricket has generated, but on a tour in which they have sometimes felt besieged they failed to press home an early advantage on the sport's most celebrated stage

At the tail-end of 2012, Sri Lanka's last marquee Test became one of their lowest points in their professional era. On a springy but manageable Melbourne deck, the batsmen collapsed twice, fielders shelled simple chances, and bowlers surrendered easy runs.

At the end of the debacle, Sri Lanka's coach spoke of how the team had perhaps imploded under the pressure they had loaded on themselves. That match had been the cricketing equivalent of going to the biggest job interview of your life, only to race manically around the room, having somehow set your own pants on fire.

Eighteen months on, Sri Lanka arrived at Lord's on the cloud of confidence their limited-overs cricket has generated. They have only played one full tour against a top-eight side in the interim, but on a tour in which they have sometimes felt besieged, Sri Lanka yearned to prove themselves on the sport's most celebrated stage.

They have been the boys who excel in blue for some time, but here, with a full-house 28,000 strong in attendance, they might have been the men who shone in white as well.

The first three hours had been so promising. Nuwan Pradeep - the catalyst of Sri Lanka's best win of the year in Dubai - had the ball swerving sharp and late, while Nuwan Kulasekara boarded up one end, pitching the ball on the straight and moving it down the slope. That mix of security and venom lured a muddled innings from Alistair Cook and loose strokes from Sam Robson and Gary Ballance.

There was energy in the field and vocal support for the men in the ring. At one stage, Kulasekara, who rarely clocks in at over 130kph, had four slips and a gully. Ambitious though the plan was, it suggested a brimming over of belief; a team riding on momentum, feeding off good vibes. In Melbourne, Sri Lanka had meandered listlessly, but here was heartening direction: clear plans, and fleshed out lines of attack.

But how quickly bad habits can return. In Australia, Sri Lanka had allowed the opposition to beat them back again and again whenever they threatened an advance, and at Lord's a swift partnership between debutant Moeen Ali and embattled Joe Root stole the visitors' initiative. Rangana Herath toiled on an unresponsive surface, but as the sun beat down on the quickly-browning pitch, the fast men wilted around him. It didn't help that the surface flattened quicker than Sri Lanka had anticipated at the toss.

"We thought the pitch would have more bounce and pace than it did," Kaushal Silva said. "But maybe at the latter part of the day it got slower. Sometimes the odd ball was keeping low as well. Hopefully, tomorrow morning, with the new ball in our hand, we can do something."

Angelo Mathews' decision to bowl first with blue sky overhead raised English eyebrows early on, but it was an understandable, given the top order's history. Sri Lanka coped with the moving ball in the ODIs, thanks in part to Tillakaratne Dilshan's circumspection, but those skills have sometimes diminished when a red ball series arrives. Even at home, Sri Lanka have collapsed against good swing bowling. Knowing his attack is doughty rather than indomitable, Mathews had perhaps reasoned the zip in the pitch represented Sri Lanka's only chance of achieving a definitive edge with the ball.

"When you have the advantage of a green pitch, you should take that. We have three quality fast bowlers, so there was doubt for Angie to take that decision."

Sri Lanka's decision to rest their spearhead-by-default Shaminda Eranga in the Northampton match, also had creditable reasons. Eranga had not played competitively since injuring his ankle in Bangladesh in February, but with Suranga Lakmal already laid low, Sri Lanka felt it wise to preserve him. He has returned from long breaks to deliver long, testing spells in the past, and he was perhaps entitled to a poor day on this return. He swung the ball at pace at times, but an economy rate of 4.77 was a fair reflection of his waywardness.

As evening came on, Sri Lanka began to serve up freebies, allowing Root unchecked progress to his hundred, and Matt Prior a smooth return to his free-flowing best. In the last half-a-session, England raced on at close to five runs an over.

Sri Lanka's attack has only succeeded when it has hunted as a pack and made run-making difficult on unresponsive surfaces. A poor end to this day may not necessarily spell doom for the Test, but already outgunned in English conditions, Sri Lanka cannot afford too many sessions like it.

At 344 for 5 and two men well set, England have the firmer grip on the match. Sri Lanka have so often been tenacious in ODIs and T20s, roaring back from near-impossible situations, refusing to accept defeat. If they can discover some of that intensity in whites, they may tip the match back in their favour and avoid another disappointment at one of cricket's cherished venues.

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Ambrose and Clarke build on solid foundation

Lancashire 286 and 84 for 2 lead Warwickshire 322 (Ambrose 62, Porterfield 57, Clarke 56) by 48 runs
Scorecard

Building an innings is as much a collective enterprise as an individual skill. As Warwickshire's lower middle order and tail played with enterprise and elan to take their side past Lancashire's total early on the third afternoon of this game, perhaps few in the Edgbaston crowd reckoned that William Porterfield's self-denying vigil the previous day had very much to do with their side's prosperity. The late belligerence shown by the visiting openers seemed to reinforce the anomalous nature of Porterfield's batting.

After all, the opener had perished in the fifth over of the morning, cutting Tom Smith to gully after adding only six to his overnight score. Subsequently Tim Ambrose and Rikki Clarke had made fifties in less than half the time taken by Porterfield in an innings which, had it been set to music, might have been entitled Variations on a Theme of Defence.

Surely Ambrose and Clarke's aggression had exposed the negativity of Porterfield's approach, the argument ran, conveniently overlooking the fact that Warwickshire's opener had been batting, for the most part, with Sam Hain, who was playing his third first-class innings, and Laurie Evans and Ateeq Javid, whose Championship averages this season are not a source of pride to their loved ones.

Slow, Porterfield certainly was. Stuck in a rut? Yes, that as well. Indeed, his entire 198-ball innings was a 284-minute rut. But his effort gave later batsmen a base from which they could play with the freedom characteristic of their own styles and they did this with considerable success against a faltering Lancashire attack suddenly presented with a different set of problems.

Ambrose was the first to unveil his attacking strokes, cover-driving Kabir Ali for a boundary and reaching his half-century in 84 balls with a cut off Glen Chapple. As the tempo increased, so the nature of the contest changed, and the crowd was further encouraged by the news that both Jim Troughton and Jonathan Trott were playing for Warwickshire's second team at Coventry.

Rather than facilitating a breakthrough, the new ball disappeared to all parts, as new balls sometimes do when batsmen screw their courage to the sticking place. At lunch Warwickshire were 234 for 5 and the spectators were eager for more of the same, thank you very much.

In this hope they were disappointed. Ambrose was lbw was playing all around a swinging delivery from Kyle Hogg and Clarke followed five overs later, bowled round his legs when attempting to sweep Simon Kerrigan.

Jeetan Patel could only swipe Hogg across the line to Alex Davies at midwicket and after Kerrigan had cleaned up Chris Wright, it needed the vaudevillian entertainment of a last wicket stand between Keith Barker and Boyd Rankin to extend the home side's lead to 36. When Smith bowled Rankin for 12, Barker was left unbeaten on 44, having reinforced his reputation as one of the circuit's most useful players.

For most counties in most conditions, wiping out such a modest first-innings lead is a task of little difficulty. But it was still heartening for the oft-tormented visiting supporters to see Paul Horton and Davies do the job in just four overs with Davies glancing Barker for four and then hooking him dextrously for six over one of Edgbaston's longer boundaries. Indeed, aided by the inaccuracy of Varun Chopra's seamers - Patel was on at the City End in the seventh over - Lancashire's openers had added a run-a-ball 54 at tea.

Some reports indicated that Edgbaston was then about to suffer the sort of rain last seen when visited on the sinful in Leviticus. However, while the restart was delayed for 90 minutes, the early evening saw a further 16 overs' play, more than enough time for Colonel and Mrs Cockup to pay one of their visits to a Red Rose innings. Instead, though, Davies and Horton extended their partnership to 71, Lancashire's highest first-wicket stand of the season, before Davies was lbw for 30 playing no shot to Patel. Horton was then caught behind for 42 in the penultimate over of the day when playing some way from his body to a good ball from Rankin.

Lancashire's lead is, therefore, 48 and Patel is getting plenty of turn from the City End. We could yet be set for a dramatic dénouement, although that is unlikely to be achieved by way of the visitors declaring. Rumour has it that the last Lancashire skipper to gamble was playing baccarat with Ian Fleming.

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Surrey roar past 600 against Gloucs

Surrey 626 for 6 (Burns 199, Solanki 143, Roy 121*, Ansari 98) lead Gloucestershire 112 by 514 runs
Scorecard

Rory Burns fell just one run short of a double-century as Surrey smashed a host of records in heaping a mammoth total of 626 for 6 on ramshackle Gloucestershire in Bristol.

Burns was not alone in falling short of a personal milestone, with Zafar Ansari slipping two short of his maiden first-class century. Burns' 199, Ansari's 98 and Jason Roy's red-hot unbeaten 121 from just 71 balls - only his second first-class hundred - were all new first-class personal bests.

Vikram Solanki also fired 143 as Surrey refused to be contained in the West Country. Gloucestershire's 112 all out is a mere speck on the County Ground horizon after two days, given Surrey's 514-run lead.

Surrey had resumed on 186 without loss, with Ansari 84 and Burns 98 overnight. Spin-bowling allrounder Ansari followed up his 77 not out and 62 against Worcestershire at The Oval at the start of the month with another fine knock, surpassing his previous best of 83 not out.

Burns eclipsed his previous top score of 121 as the visitors applied a constant chokehold - and then Roy hammered past his 106 not out highest knock without consummate ease.

Ansari proved the day's first dismissal, just two runs shy of that maiden first-class century, Alex Gidman holding the catch from Benny Howell's bowling. South Africa's new Test captain Hashim Amla was unable to force a start, trapped leg before by Will Gidman for just 9.

Surrey breezed away from leaking two wickets for 12 runs, Burns ticking along at a solid rate and new partner Solanki raising the pace. The vastly-experienced 38-year-old blasted his century from just 112 balls as the visitors showed their superiority.

Burns and Solanki put on 212 for the third wicket as Surrey seriously ratcheted up proceedings, Burns homing in on a double century. Just as he was lining up his celebrations though, Liam Norwell had him caught by Alex Gidman, just the one agonising run short.

Unsatisfied with 439 for 3, greedy Surrey kept on dismantling the Gloucestershire attack. Steven Davies fell to Will Gidman for 9, but Solanki moved on to 143 before he was removed, by Matt Taylor.

Sensing a slog-fest, Roy stepped into the fray and produced the innings of the day, where aggression was concerned at least. His howitzer hundred came from just 55 balls and 67 minutes, including nine fours and seven sixes. Gary Wilson then hit 26 before he was clean bowled by Norwell, with Gareth Batty 4 not out at the close.

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