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Swann strikes crucial blows; maiden century by Bopara

— PHOTO: AFP

MEMORABLE FEAT: Ravi Bopara celebrates with Tim Ambrose after scoring his first Test century.

BRIDGETOWN: Two wickets — both to Graeme Swann — set England’s pulse racing before lunch in the fourth Test against West Indies on Saturday.

Swann removed Devon Smith for 55 and Ryan Hinds for 15 to leave West Indies at 163 for three, replying to England’s first innings total of 600 for six declared, at lunch on the third day at Kensington Oval.

At the interval, Ramnaresh Sarwan was unbeaten on 81 and Shivnarine Chanderpaul on four.

Swann has been England’s most successful bowler with two wickets for 38 runs from 14 overs.

The off-spinner struck with his third ball after Sarwan and Smith batted through the first hour to add 108 for the second wicket.

England started with Stuart Broad from the Malcolm Marshall End at the southern side of the ground and Ryan Sidebottom from the opposite Joel Garner End.

Neither could make a breakthrough and both batsmen took the opportunity to pass 50 — Sarwan for the fourth time in the series, when he drove Broad to mid-off for a single, and Smith for the fourth time in his career, when he edged Sidebottom between the slips to third man for his eighth and final boundary.

But Swann had Smith adjudged lbw playing forward defensively to leave West Indies 121 for two.

Swann continued to wheel away from the Joel Garner End on the northern side of the ground, while England captain Andrew Strauss alternated between Stuart Broad and James Anderson.

Swann again provided England with the breakthrough, when left-hander Ryan Hinds was also adjudged lbw playing forward defensively about five minute before the interval.

Bopara’s feat

Earlier, Ravi Bopara hit his maiden Test hundred to help England to a formidable first innings.

Bopara followed up his blistering hundred in a two-day, warm-up match last weekend with an equally purposeful 104.

Bopara arrived in the Caribbean last Saturday from the England Lions’ tour of New Zealand to cover for the injured Andrew Flintoff, who has flown home for treatment on his injured hip, and got into his stride with 124 against a side of young, inexperienced Barbadians.

Successful partnerships

On Friday, the 23-year-old shared successive hundred-run stands with Paul Collingwood and Tim Ambrose.

Collingwood scored 96 and Ambrose was unbeaten on 76 when England declared. Fidel Edwards took three for 151 runs from 30 overs and was the most successful West Indies bowler.

Anderson then trapped Gayle lbw for six playing back and across to a delivery that straightened on him in the fifth over of the West Indies’ reply.

England had to refer the decision to video umpire Daryl Harper to get the decision, after on-field umpire Russell Tiffin chose to give the West Indies captain the benefit of the doubt.

Bopara, playing his first Test since the tour of Sri Lanka at the end of 2007, overcame a black eye, the result of being accidentally hit under his grill by paceman Fidel Edwards.

“I felt pretty confident from the minute I went out there on the back of a hundred in the warm-up game,” said Bopara. “I’m happy with that and hopefully I can build from there. Fidel Edwards did come back at me, getting me on the grill, but it fired me up. — Agencies

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