Yardy ton gives Lions the edge

Day 1 England Lions 273 for 4 (Yardy 151*, Makda 3-57) v West Zone
Scorecard

England Lions' captain Michael Yardy struck an unbeaten 151 to lead his side to a healthy 273 for 4 at the end of the first day of their Duleep Trophy match against West Zone in Vadodara.

After choosing to bat, the Lions got off to a poor start as the in-form Michael Carberry was trapped leg before by Gujarat medium-pacer Ashraf Makda in the second over. Yardy, who has represented the England national side in Twenty20s and ODIs, came in at No. 3 and forged a series of sizeable partnerships to ensure the Lions gained the upper hand.

A brisk 50-run stand for the second wicket with Joe Denly (32) was ended when Denly was run-out by Siddharth Trivedi. Yardy was then joined by Ed Joyce (32), another player who was part of the national set-up, and they stitched together a patient 75 runs before Joyce was dismissed by Makda.

With the Lions at 126 for 3, the usually aggressive Jonathan Trott (44) played a subdued knock and put on 141 for the fourth wicket as the Lions took control. With only three overs left in the day's play, Trott became Makda's third lbw victim. Graham Onions was sent in as the nightwatchman and the Lions saw out the remaining overs without any further casualties.

Yardy, meanwhile, had brought up his 12th first-class century with the help of 20 boundaries to leave West, who need a win to make the finals, facing an uphill task.