Yorkshire opener Adam Lyth has spoken of his delight at surpassing his previous career-best as the Tykes dominated day one of their LV=County Championship fixture with Somerset.
The 22-year-old plundered 15 boundaries in the Taunton sunshine, to eclipse the 132 which he made against Nottinghamshire two years ago, as the Tykes closed on 296-4.
“My heart was in my mouth for the shot which took me past 100,” admitted Lyth, who was finally ousted for 142 after a five-and-a-half hour stay at the crease.
“I am grateful that I got past the nervous nineties.”
His worries were certainly justified because despite being in sparkling form so far this season, reaching 40 on five occasions before this game, the opener has got out three times within 16 runs of three figures.
That hoodoo was emphatically put to bed in the west country and from the first ball of the day, which he hit for four, the left-hander was in no mood to let another century opportunity go begging.
Once more his opening partnership with Joe Sayers deserves a special mention.
After winning the toss and electing to bat under stand-in captain Jacques Rudolph – deputising for Andrew Gale who is away with the England Lions – the two of them put on 115 for the first wicket to record their third century partnership in this, the sixth LV=Championship division one game of the season.
Even after Sayers was dismissed after lunch, edging to Murali Kartik at second slip off Ben Phillips for 50, the onslaught from the Tykes batsmen continued with the arrival of Anthony McGrath to the crease.
Against an increasingly deflated, and always one-dimensional Somerset attack who used eight bowlers, the pair added a further 136 runs before Lyth was caught by Phillips at mid-on off Zander de Bruyn to end his fabulous knock.
Rudolph, who made 11, and then Gary Ballance, who made only four, quickly came and went, but McGrath will resume day two on 73, with Steven Patterson, in as night-watchman, on one.
Meanwhile the county have confirmed that they do not expect any of their England representatives to join the side in the south-west following their Twenty20 win in the Caribbean.
The original hope followed the ECB decision to allow James Anderson to play for the final two days of Lancashire’s match with Warwickshire.
That raised expectations that either Ajmal Shahzad or Tim Bresnan could turn out for the Tykes in Taunton.
But those hopes have now been dashed.
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