Lehmann keeps England on their toes

England XI 1 for 24 trail South Australia 7 for 247 dec (Lehmann 99, Borgas 73, Hoggard 3-40) by 223 runs
Scorecard

Shaun Tait struck a telling blow to justify Darren Lehmann's declaration after he had saved South Australia from embarrassment on day one of the tour match against England. The home side was 4 for 25 after an early blast from Matthew Hoggard, but Lehmann revived South Australia with a classy 99 before he closed the innings at 7 for 247.

Tait, who was picked in a 13-man squad for the first Test on Thursday, delivered three high-speed overs and picked up Andrew Strauss lbw with his second legitimate ball. The first attempt was a wide and his direction during the mini-spell was a concern at times, but he readjusted to beat Strauss and finished with 1 for 11. Alastair Cook was unbeaten on 6 while Hoggard, the nightwatchman, was 10 not out as England reached 1 for 24 at stumps.

Hoggard was also a key player at the start of the day, which began with Steve Harmison being ruled out with a side strain. Enjoying his work with the new ball, Hoggard followed James Anderson's dismissal of Matthew Elliott with three quick wickets. He captured Daniel Harris to an edge to third slip and was on a hat-trick after flicking Mark Cosgrove's glove and trapping Callum Ferguson, who offered no shot to a straight ball.

The performance of Hoggard was timely ahead of the Gabba and he returned 3 for 40. Monty Panesar was also given a boost when he was preferred to Ashley Giles in the starting side and he worked through 22 economical overs and collected Cameron Borgas for 73.

Borgas had battled hard with Lehmann to re-float South Australia and they achieved their aim in a 157-run stand. An Anderson throw from near the boundary ended the partnership when Lehmann was run-out chasing a second run and a century. He drove and swept cleverly during his 143-ball innings and grabbed ten fours while Borgas played a more patient role.