Strong opening statement by Trescothick

Strong opening statement by Trescothick
Associated press

Galle, February 24: Opener Marcus Trescothick scored his maiden Test century today as England reached 202 for four at stumps on the third day of the first Test against Sri Lanka.

England still require 69 runs to avoid the follow-on target of 271 after Sri Lanka posted a massive total of 470 for five declared in the first innings of the first ever Test series between the two nations.

At stumps, Trescothick remained 119 not out and nightwatchman Robert Croft had not scored after facing 18 balls. England trail Sri Lanka’s first innings by 268 runs.

Trescothick reached his first Test century with a single to cover off Muttiah Muralitharan after surviving five hours and facing 340 deliveries.He became only the second Englishman to score a century in a Test in Sri Lanka after Robin Smith’s 128 at Colombo in 1992-1993.

His success with the bat came as good news for England, who had to overcome a tricky period after lunch when they lost three wickets for 34 runs in 19 overs as Muralitharan the world’s No.1 off-spin bowler made his first mark on the series.

Muralitharan removed England skipper Nasser Hussain (3) and No. 4 Graham Thorpe (7) in quick succession after Sri Lanka’s left-arm seamer Chaminda Vaas had opener Michael Atherton (33) adjudged leg-before wicket in the first over after lunch.

Trescothick could have been out in the second over of the day when he edged Vaas just short of Aravinda de Silva at slip having added only one run to his overnight 11. He was dropped on 27 when Muralitharan spilled a difficult, diving return catch.

For Sri Lanka, Muralitharan was the most successful bowler with two for 57 off 41 overs.

Despite having played six Tests dating back to 1982, England and Sri Lanka have never before met in a Test series. England lead head-to-heads 3-2 with one draw.

Before the day’s play started today, Atherton, a former England skipper, faced charges of code violation.

Atherton’s minor brush with match referee Hanumant Singh of India occurred before play started when he went to examine the pitch.

He walked onto the wicket as his teammates practiced and took his stance at each end, lightly patting his bat on the crease before Singh intervened.

Singh warned Atherton that his actions were contrary to the rules and referred the matter to England coach Duncan Fletcher. The rules dictate that: “Only the captain and coach may go onto the pitch” before the start of play and “no one may strike (the pitch) with the bat to assess its condition.”

Scoreboard
Sri Lanka (1st innings) 470-5 decl
England (1st innings, overnight 27-0)
M Atherton lbw b Vaas 33
M Trescothick not out 119
N Hussain lbw b Muralitharan 3
G Thorpe c Dilshan b Muralitharan 7
A Stewart lbw B jayasuriya 19
R Croft not out 0
Extras: (b-2, lb-2, nb-17) 21
Total: (For 4 wkts, 106 overs) 202
Fall of wickets: 1-83, 2-93, 3-117, 4-197
Bowling: Vaas 18-4-34-1, Muralitharan 41-10-56-2, Dharmasena 22-6-51-0, Fernando 2-0-10-0, Jayasuriya 20-5-42-1, De Silva 3-2-5-0