ADULT CHAT LINE

All the anger and frustration of a disappointing winter flooded out as Bairstow celebrated a century that showed just what a gem he is

FIRED-UP Jonny Bairstow turned up the heat on Sri Lanka with a brilliant hundred at his first attempt as a No.3 and then raged until darkness fell in Colombo.

A dab sweep took him to his sixth Test ton and from there Bairstow let out a roar, held his arms to the sky, acknowledged the dressing-room and the crowd, threw down his bat and his helmet, clenched his fists and hugged his batting partner.

This was a celebration of raw emotion from the first England No.3 to score a hundred for two years since Joe

Root in Rajkot 27 matches ago.

All the anger and frustration that had been bubbling away since he twisted his ankle playing football came spilling out as he showed just why he is and will continue to be a gem of a player for this team.

“It meant a heck of a lot to me,” said Bairstow. “To come in and do well means a huge amount and it is one of the most satisfying innings of my career.

“There are different things you go through when you get castigated about being injured doing X, Y and Z when people don’t actually see what’s gone on. People sometimes have an opinion when they’re sat at home and they don’t see the hard work and the graft that goes on in the heat and humidity and all the other stuff like sleeping on an ice machine.

“You have to deliver when asked to. You get left out of the side when you’ve not done too much wrong over the last couple of years and then all of a sudden you’re asked to bat where you’ve not batted before.

“Look at the challenges put in front of me as a cricketer and there’s been quite a few. I would like to hope I’ve come through most challenges along the way and I’m desperately proud. This past couple of weeks has been really tough.”

It has been tough for Bairstow because not only did he lose his England place to injury and then the performances of Ben Foakes, he revealed two friends had died, including a former Yorkshire academy teammate Chris Allinson. That put things into perspective for the 29-year-old, who managed to park those thoughts for the duration of his innings of 110 and produce a performance seen from him so many times before.

His England career has

rarely been straightforward though, be it his first introduction as a batsman in 2012, being dropped before taking the gloves briefly at the end of the 2013-14 Ashes series, to here playing once more as a batsman only. He was made to wait his turn in the one-day side despite delivering time and again whenever he got the chance to play, then being told the only room they had for him was as an opening batsman and he had to adapt.

His chanceless century in the blistering heat of Colombo was a classic example of him meeting a challenge heads.

Bairstow added 100 with Joe Root and 99 with Ben Stokes. England were 312-7 at stumps. ENGLAND FIRST INNINGS Extras Total 7 wkts Fall:

Bowling: