Roaring Lyon rips into job at hand

NATHAN Lyon roared against England at the Gabba yesterday.

After putting a target on his head by talking a big game all week, Lyon backed it up with a radar-like run out Ricky Ponting would have been proud of.

Lyon has never had to deal with the pressure of facing up to a storm of his own creation, a unique challenge that doesn’t suit every personality.

But in a mark of what a confident beast Lyon has become, he yesterday usurped his vaunted pace attack for much of the day to stand out as the most dangerous Australian bowler.

Off-spinner Lyon looked threatening every time he hopped to the crease and deserved a wicket.

But he provided the day’s main turning point anyway when he swooped on a James Vince bunt into the infield like a big cat pouncing on its prey.

A freakish one-handed pick-up and ruthless throwing down of the stumps at the nonstriker’s end — all in one beautiful motion — caught Vince well out of his crease.

It was the kind of attacking play which forged Ponting’s reputation as a fielding gun.

Lyon has come into this series in the form of his career, having destroyed Bangladesh in what was one of the most dominant displays ever by a bowler in a two-Test series.

Lyon should have had Vince caught behind 15 runs before he ran him out — and constantly troubled England’s batsmen. The wickets didn’t come, but Lyon is now what Graeme Swann was for England a few years ago — an ever-present danger.