By Simon Wilkes
Zak Crawley “felt in good touch” as he scored 124 to silence some of his critics on the opening day of the one-off Test with Zimbabwe at Trent Bridge.
The Kent opener has been backed by coach Brendon McCullum and skipper Ben Stokes but needed a big score to quieten his doubters as England prepare for a summer series with India ahead of a blockbuster Ashes series in Australia.
Big opening stand
Crawley has forged a prolific opening partnership with Ben Duckett since McCullum took the reins as red-ball coach.
And the duo put the Zimbabwe bowling attack to the sword on Thursday, piling up an opening stand of 231 before Duckett was out for a swashbuckling 140 off 134 balls.
Crawley creamed 14 fours in his 171-ball innings of 124 and told Sky Sports at stumps: “I was pleased I could pounce on the bad balls and score ones off the good ones. I have been trying to stand taller in my set-up.
“I always want a big score. I was disappointed when I got out as there were some more runs for the taking, but I was pleased with how I played. I felt in good touch coming in.”
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Under pressure
“You know you are under pressure, but I just want to play well,” Crawley continued. “[Social media] can bother you a little bit but the annoying thing is not playing well. That’s what I focus on.
“You don’t want to feel like you are hanging on. I have felt under pressure for my place loads of times in my career and it’s a much nicer place to be when you feel you are contributing.”
England closed the day on a massive 498 for three as Ollie Pope, batting at number three, piled on 169 runs from 163 balls and was not out at the close of play alongside Harry Brook.
Joe Root fell for 34 but passed the landmark of 13,000 Test runs – only the fifth batter in history to do so.
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