Close England 295 for 4 (Vaughan 177) v Australia
Scorecard

After all the hard-luck stories and worn-out limbs, providence finally took a shine to England on the first day of the second Test at Adelaide. Australia put down five catches, while Michael Vaughan made the most of a controversial early reprieve to fashion a wonderful 177 before falling to the last ball of the day. England closed on 295 for 4, and though their progress was untidy at times, they will not care in the slightest.

Vaughan's innings was not unlike the curate's egg: at times his strokeplay was quite majestic, yet he certainly rode his luck. But it was still an heroic performance from Vaughan, who again demonstrated a distinctly un-English taste for the big hundred, though he again fell short of a double-century. In all he faced 306 balls, hitting 22 fours and three sixes, in the highest score by an Englishman in Australia since Mike Denness's 188 at Melbourne in 1974-75.

That England's luck would be so emphatically in seemed improbable at the start. John Crawley failed a fitness test on his hip injury, Vaughan twisted his knee in the warm-up and was briefly doubtful, and Mark Butcher was suffering from a migraine that forced him to drop down the order. But then Nasser Hussain won a vital toss, and it all started to go right.

The first hour was drowsy, but the introduction of Andy Bichel was the catalyst for some pyrotechnics. Vaughan sliced his fifth ball to cover point where Justin Langer took a tumbling catch, but while it was probably out, the evidence was inevitably and wearyingly inconclusive. After seven or eight replays Vaughan, who had 19 at the time, was duly given not out and Australian hands drifted sanctimoniously to their hips.

Either side of that escape, Vaughan took advantage of the short square boundaries to pirouette and pull the increasingly apoplectic Bichel for a couple of glorious sixes. Marcus Trescothick, who made 35 in an opening partnership of 88, never approached such fluency, however. He was dropped by Matthew Hayden in the gully before offering a crooked bat to McGrath and dragging on.

Robert Key was promoted to No. 3, but after his storming tour form there was a whiff of Sod's Law about his innings. He made 1 off 23 balls before falling to Warne, courtesy of a stunning catch by Ricky Ponting at silly point, who clutched the ball as it popped up off his ankle in a manner reminiscent of Wayne Phillips's infamous dismissal at Edgbaston in 1985 (106 for 2).

Key was distinctly unfortunate, but Vaughan and Hussain more than made up for that during a third-wicket partnership of 140. Vaughan was dropped when 56 and Hussain at 13 and 35, the latter a sitter to Warne at first slip off Steve Waugh, who gave both batsmen serious problems in a relentless spell of short-pitched if somewhat short-paced bowling.

As Hussain rolled up his sleeves and scrapped to 47, Vaughan began to unfurl some delicious drives and forces through the off side. His sixth Test century came off 175 balls; it was also his fifth in the last six months and his first outside England. He celebrated by belting a Warne full-toss for a massive six before taking a nasty blow on the shoulder from Jason Gillespie that forced him to fling down his bat in agony.

Vaughan eased past 150 only for England to lose Hussain in the next over, caught behind off Warne as he bottom-edged a cut (246 for 3). Soon after Bichel grassed a diving caught-and-bowled chance as Vaughan drove wearily back to him.

Australia took the second new ball at the first opportunity, but Vaughan and Butcher (22 not out) had very few alarms … until Waugh threw the ball to Bichel for the last over of the day. His third delivery invited a tired prod from Vaughan, and Warne at first slip finally held onto a chance.

It was the cruellest finish imaginable for Vaughan, though Bichel and Australia will feel he should have been on his way 158 runs earlier. Either way, when England were struggling to find 11 fit men this morning, they and Vaughan would have taken the day's events.

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