England Lions in control against Cricket Australia XI as batsmen pile on 600

​England Lions passed 600 in their first innings against Cricket Australia XI in Hobart, taking two wickets in the reply to leave the visitors well on top.

Resuming on 367/4, with Dan Lawrence 103 not out overnight, the Lions continued the fast pace of scoring. Nightwatchman Dom Bess fell for 15 with the score one shy of 400, with Gloucestershire ‘keeper James Bracey joining Lawrence at the crease.

Lawrence was well on the offensive by this point - the pair added 118 for the sixth wicket in just 20 overs before the Essex batsman was finally dismissed for 190 from 194 balls.

Bracey passed 50 before being dismissed by Brendan Doggett. Craig Overton (41) joined Somerset teammate Lewis Gregory at the crease, with the pair taking the Lions past 600 with a partnership of 78 from 13 overs, before captain Gregory declared once his wicket fell for 45.

The total of 613/8dec is the second highest ever for an England A/Lions team, behind the 624/8dec against South Africa A in Paarl in 2015, and the highest ever for the team in Australia. It was also the first time in England A/Lions history that three batsman have scored centuries in the same innings.

It took just three balls to make inroads in the CA XI innings, with Gregory having Caleb Jewell caught behind for a duck. Sam Whiteman and Jason Sangha put on 67 for the second wicket before Lancashire’s Richard Gleeson bowled Whiteman for 26.

CA XI finished the day on 146/2, 467 runs behind with Sangha unbeaten on 69 and captain Jake Lehmann on 37.

QUOTES

Lewis Gregory said: “I’m really proud of the boys who’ve helped us rack up this formidable total to put us in a strong position to win this match.

“Dom and Keaton batted beautifully yesterday, with Dan carrying on his day one form to propel us even further today with great support from James.

“I enjoyed my partnership at the end with Craig to push past the 600 mark and we’ve started well in the tough task of taking 20 Australian wickets. The next two days will be a great test for us.”