Lord's Test, Day 2
Friday, May 17, 2002 It was always going to be a tough little session this evening. As we found with each of our three new balls, there was more and more uneven bounce on each occasion, and it was no different when Sri Lanka had their turn to bowl. Obviously facing two left-armers was an added challenge, and Marcus [Trescothick] got one that hit the footholes and died on him, just before he was out. But that's an occupational hazard of being a left-hander. It's still a good wicket, and even if the bounce gets more uneven, there's no reason why we can't bat well on it.

Our catching this morning was disappointing, but there's not a great deal to say about it. With my one, I actually heard the [no-ball] call so I sort of half-palmed it, though Freddie [Flintoff] maybe should have taken the second one. That last one though - it really flew. It would have been tough for anyone to take. Generally speaking, we've caught well in the last few months, so I'm not worried.

Since the start of the match the surface has hardened up quite a lot and got considerably quicker, which is very unusual for Lord's in May. There has been very little swing on offer throughout, and Andrew Caddick was bowling with a scrambled seam a lot of the time to try and extract as much uneven bounce as possible. The ball lost its shine and hardness quite early on, and we even went for a bit of reverse swing in the afternoon, which is unheard of in May. The conditions are pretty alien, to be honest. Usually you just stick it up there on a full length and let the conditions do the rest. This time we've really had to experiment.

Dominic Cork bowled beautifully for me today - he was the guy I always turned to for that bit extra and he gave it everything. Unfortunately he picked up a slight groin twinge towards the end, but it doesn't seem too serious. He's packed it in ice and it should be okay by the morning.

There is a thunderstorm forecast for tonight, so we will have to wait and see how that affects the match. Most of all, a wet outfield will reduce the amount of swing they get, so that will be to our advantage - and there might be some time lost from the game. But that's all by the by. The Sri Lankans showed what's possible on this pitch. We've got to get out there tomorrow and bat to the best of our abilities.

Nasser Hussain was talking to Andrew Miller. His thoughts appear on Wisden.com, other duties permitting, at the end of each day of international cricket that England play.

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