Thursday 26th February 2009
Strauss ton puts England on top
Skipper Andrew Strauss led England to a great position on the first day of the fourth Test with his brilliant 142.
Strauss struck his 16th Test hundred to charge England out of the blocks in their must-win fourth Test at Barbados.Strauss and Alastair Cook shared England's first double century opening stand for more than four years, in fact, to make good of winning the toss at Kensington Oval.
But once their stand of 229 came to its conclusion minutes after tea - the highest since Strauss and Marcus Trescothick turned the momentum of a match against South Africa in Durban in December 2004 - the runs dried up.
England totally dominated the first two sessions only to be pegged back by a loss of wickets in a turgid evening period, and closed on 301 for three.
Strauss was dismissed for 142 in spectacular manner by fast bowler Daren Powell to provide a breakthrough in the 65th over of a bat-dominated opening day.
A full delivery demolished Strauss' stumps to provide Powell with some joy after much suffering.
Opening partner Cook then perished five overs later, six short of a hundred, when he mishit a pull off Jerome Taylor which was clutched by a diving Ryan Hinds at midwicket.
It continued Cook's run of failing to register a Test century to 27 innings and to add to the frustration this was the 11th time he has got halfway there without converting.
The statistic clearly played on Cook's mind as he got closer to addressing it - he might have been caught at deep square-leg from a top-edged pull off Powell but for an unenthusiastic attempt in the deep from Sulieman Benn when on 85.
Having got down the other end with a single, however, he enjoyed another slice of fortune moments later when an edge off Taylor flew between wicketkeeper Denesh Ramdin and slip Chris Gayle for four.
The jittery nature of Cook's innings was in contrast to Strauss, who followed his 169 in the drawn match in Antigua last week by celebrating his latest three-figure contribution before the halfway point of the opening day.
He did so in great style, hauling a delivery from spinner Sulieman Benn into the second tier of the Greenidge & Haynes stand.
Strauss took advantage of being dropped on 58 to reach his latest hundred from 144 deliveries - in addition to that monstrous six he also struck 15 fours.
England impose themselves early
It was a strong statement from an England team attempting to overcome the odds to win a campaign they trail 1-0 with two matches to play.
They went into this contest without Andrew Flintoff, whose hip injury puts any future participation on this tour in doubt, and first-choice wicketkeeper Matt Prior due to paternity leave.
Fast bowler Steve Harmison was also left out on selection grounds, with Ryan Sidebottom preferred, as three changes were made to the XI which came so agonisingly close at the Antigua Recreation Ground.
Owais Shah returned to the Test team with a half-century there but appeared nervous today and perished, after spending 47 balls over seven, when he chopped a delivery from the 6ft 7ins Benn to slip.
Shah failed to fire
The Middlesex batsman contributed to a clogging up of the scoreboard - only 39 runs were scored in 22 overs between tea and the new ball being taken at 260 for three.
Kevin Pietersen and Paul Collingwood took advantage of some further loose stuff which mirrored the start made by the West Indian pace attack this morning.
Things turned particularly ragged in fact when Taylor bodged a skier to fine leg after Fidel Edwards had hurried Pietersen, on 20, with a bouncer in the fourth over before the close.
Wides, no-balls and byes followed in an over which yielded 15 runs in all to emphasise that England had been let off the hook.
Profligacy was a feature at the other end of the day as Strauss exposed Daren Powell's continued misdirection in this campaign by hitting three boundaries in the Jamaican fast bowler's opening couple of overs.
It was Powell's introduction from the Joel Garner end which catalysed the tourists' scoring as his opening two overs cost cost 18 runs.
Strauss prospered
Strauss was the main beneficiary of the indiscipline, enjoying a personal run glut of 23 runs from 12 deliveries.
When Strauss did make an error on 58, with en edged drive at Edwards, he was inexplicably reprieved by home captain Chris Gayle, who floored a dolly at slip.
Moments later England's policy of attack was emphasised when Cook launched Benn for only the second six of his 40-match Test career, via a slog-sweep over midwicket before lunch.
However, Cook's more sedate contribution saw him spend two-and-a-half hours over his 50.
To highlight the contrast in pace between the openers, six overs later Strauss received a hearty response for his hundred from a British-dominated crowd.
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