Roy rebuilding with century to prove his class
TWO high-class centuries bookended the London Derby at Lord’s.
First came a magnificent 110 from Jason Roy. After a grim recent run of first-class innings – single-figure scores in six of his previous seven innings, including a pair of ducks in his last two – here Roy showed that he could thrive in first-class cricket while remaining true to his attacking game.
“I’ve found it hard to switch between the three formats but I’m not the only one,” Roy said. “Your mindset’s completely different. I’ve tried to keep my movements the same and that’s the hardest thing.”
Here was vindication for not attempting to switch his mindset between the formats too much. While there was no improvisation in Roy’s innings and he was happy to play out the occasional maiden, his natural timing and power were all evident, particularly in some sumptuous driving: consecutive off-drives off Toby Roland-Jones, one a little to mid-off’s right, the next a little to his left, stood out.
“My method is now very similar – it never used to be,” he said. “It was tough going in with a different mindset and different way of batting: it was pretty silly. I just went in and treated it like a 50-over game and got myself in. You’re allowed a bit more time in Championship cricket so if they bowled a maiden at me I wasn’t under pressure. That was the only difference.
“I almost enjoy it more in the longer format because I’m not under that pressure to score at six, seven, eight, nine an over: I can just bat.”
Roy’s innings made it easy to understand why Trevor Bayliss has publicly touted him as a potential Test player.
“He’s spoken to me and told me to score as many runs as I can. Obviously volume of runs speaks louder than anything. Unfortunately I haven’t got the volume that I’d have liked, but this is a start.”
The pace of Roy’s innings on the opening day helped Surrey recover from 71-3, and do so at a pace to set up victory. Despite a Lord’s pitch that refused to deteriorate – even if it offered the bowlers a little more than in previous Championship matches this season – Surrey manoeuvred themselves into a match-winning position. A cautious rebuilding stand between Sam Curran and Ben Foakes, two young cricketers brimming with potential, enabled Surrey to set Middlesex 389. With almost 60 overs remaining on the final afternoon, Middlesex stumbled to 82-5. Now proved a good time for Middlesex to show the resolve that has characterised their elevation to the summit of Division One. George Bailey and James Franklin did just that, playing Surrey’s spin twins immaculately, adding 174 in 51.2 overs. In his last game at Lord’s during his Middlesex stint, Bailey was able to leave the ultimate parting gift: an unbeaten century to extend Middlesex’s lead at the top of the Championship to 13 points. Surrey threw everything at Bailey, but it was not enough: even from the final ball of the day, with a draw already secured, Bailey unfurled a serene straight drive. A few minutes earlier, he had completed a century with three consecutive rasping cuts. For a man who has captained Australia in the World Twenty20, won the World Cup and played in the IPL, Bailey’s palpable delight at registering a century at Lord’s was rather endearing. “I’d be happy with no one in the ground here. Playing here is so special,” he said.