Opening poser continues for England

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Opening poser continues for England

England were little wiser about the identity of Alastair Cook's new Test opening partner, after another failure from Nick Compton and only a modicum of comparative success for Joe Root.

Compton this morning (Saturday) followed his duck against India A on Tuesday with just a single, while Root batted almost throughout the first session at the Dr DY Patil Sports Stadium only to succumb to the last ball before lunch for a painstaking 28 on debut.
The young Yorkshireman's was the third wicket to fall for just 10 runs against Mumbai A, but from 66 for four Eoin Morgan (53no) and Jonny Bairstow (51no) provided some much-needed substance in an unbroken century stand on the way to a tea-time 174.
The 'shoot-out' billed between Compton and Root lasted little more than quarter-of-an-hour after stand-in captain Stuart Broad won the toss in a match minus the rested Kevin Pietersen.
The two contenders at least both got off the mark, Compton having to dive in to complete the scampered single which got Root under way.
His reward, however, was a good ball soon afterwards from Kshemal Waingankar which held its line and evaded his forward-defence to knock out off-stump.
Root fared better, coming through the initial threat of Waingankar - a seamer who took five wickets against England four years ago when they were bowled out for just 98 in a crushing limited-overs defeat but who was playing in only his 12th first-class match at the age of 27.
The Yorkshireman, six years younger, displayed the maturity which has impressed so many as he waited more than an hour before registering a boundary - a clip off his legs when Shardul Thakur returned for his second spell after drinks.
It was to be Root's only four, though, before he was caught at short-leg off the part-time bowling of home captain Suryakumar Yadav on the stroke of lunch.
Jonathan Trott had shared a half-century stand with Root before a waft at a wide one from Javed Khan brought only an edge behind.
Ian Bell, also caught by wicketkeeper Sufiyan Shaikh when Waingankar found the edge with movement off the pitch, like Compton made his second single-figure score on tour - adding four here to the five he managed at the Brabourne Stadium.
Morgan and Bairstow, runless between them, therefore had an important job to do after lunch to ensure England's innings did not fall well short of expectations against a routine attack on a fair pitch.
They performed admirably in a wicketless second session, Morgan clubbing Yadav high over long-on for an early six in a 81-ball 50 also containing six fours - the same as Bairstow, from 77 deliveries.
But Cook and coach Andy Flower would surely have preferred some more pertinent answers about the form and potential of their prospective new openers than the well-being of middle-order back-ups.