Lyth makes statement of intent as Yorkshire launch new season

Yorkshire are taking on MCC in the Champion County game in Abu Dhabi, where the traditional curtain-raiser to the English summer is staged.

It is like playing football’s Charity Shield in the United Arab Emirates.

The setting may be unfamiliar but the quality of Yorkshire’s cricket stays the same.

After losing the toss at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium, the champions had by far the better of the opening day of the first-class summer.

They dismissed a strong MCC team for 221 – England Test captain Alastair Cook scoring just three – and were 82-2 at stumps, 139 behind.

Adam Lyth, who is looking to impress Cook ahead of the forthcoming tour to the West Indies, finished unbeaten on 53.

Amid talk of a Cook-Jonathan Trott opening alliance in the Caribbean, it was a statement of intent by the Yorkshire left-hander.

Not so by Cook, who has not hit a Test hundred for 22 months, and whose lack of form recently culminated in his loss of the England one-day captaincy, much to his chagrin.

After Ryan Sidebottom struck with the first ball of the match, having MCC captain Nick Compton caught behind by Jonny Bairstow from an ambitious drive, Cook started his season in disappointing style.

Sidebottom got a couple to shape away from him before summoning one that held its line and trapped him lbw, leaving MCC 7-2 after just 16 deliveries.

At a time when English cricket is crying out for a quality left-arm pace bowler, how ironic that Sidebottom still looks good enough to perform that role at the age of 37, more than four years after he retired from international competition.

Michael Carberry – another sore at his treatment by England in one-day cricket – settled down to repair the damage with James Hildreth in good batting conditions.

The pair coped confidently with the dreaded pink ball, with the Champion County game a day-night fixture played under lights, and had taken the total to 81 when Carberry was dismissed, caught by Lyth at second slip off Steve Patterson.

MCC lunched – or, more accurately, took afternoon tea as it was 4.30pm local time – on 107-3, Hildreth having comfortably advanced to 58.

Yorkshire were sloppy in the half-hour after the restart, Hildreth and Daryl Mitchell helping themselves to boundaries, and the champions were happy to finally see the back of Hildreth when Tim Bresnan trapped him lbw for 89 to leave MCC 160-4.

Thereafter, the innings fell apart like a flawed argument.

Will Rhodes, the 20-year-old all-rounder making his first-class debut, took his maiden wicket when he trapped Mitchell lbw for 54.

It was the first time a 
W. Rhodes had made his first-class debut for Yorkshire since 1898, and the previous one could play a bit, they say.

MCC fell to 186-6 when Sam Billings shouldered arms to Jack Brooks and to 186-7 when Brooks struck again five balls later to have Chris Rushworth caught behind.

Rhodes claimed a second wicket when Graham Onions went lbw before Adil Rashid popped up to round off proceedings just after tea.

The leg-spinner, who will be joining Lyth on the tour to the West Indies, removed Adam Riley lbw and had Matt Dunn caught at slip by Lyth.

From 160-4, it was a clumsy collapse by MCC and a fine fightback by Yorkshire, for whom the wickets were shared around with Rhodes’s 2-10 the best figures.

With Yorkshire unsure how conditions would play in the final session, they started carefully against an attack that lost Onions when he suffered a groin injury.

Alex Lees, who is leading Yorkshire in place of club captain Andrew Gale, who is suspended until the second County Championship game against Nottinghamshire after verbally abusing Lancashire’s Ashwell Prince last summer, fell with the total on 39, caught behind off Dunn.

Lyth advanced to 50 from 72 balls with five fours and was well supported by Jack Leaning, to whom Yorkshire will be looking for big runs when they are depleted by international calls at the start of the season.

Leaning played nicely for 14 and it was some surprise when he was dismissed 15 minutes before the close, caught by Mitchell at slip off the left-arm spinner Zafar Ansari.

Patterson performed nightwatchman duties with aplomb to help Lyth through to stumps.