England make steady start in Lahore

Opening pair Mike Atherton and Marcus Trescothick gave England a faultless start to the first Test match against Pakistan this morning batting steadily through to lunch without loss.

They batted for 31 overs on a slow and low pitch at the Gaddafi Stadium to put on 76 after skipper Nasser Hussain won the toss and elected to bat.

By lunch, Trescothick was unbeaten on 44 after playing positively throughout the morning while Atherton had shown his customary patience to finish the session 27 not out having faced 87 balls.

Andrew Flintoff, who was hit on the nose yesterday and taken to hospital for X-rays, was left out of the final line up when overnight, his face swelled causing problems with visibility.

Spinning pair Ian Salisbury and Ashley Giles were both included and Craig White's hamstring problem had eased to allow him to join England's pace attack.

Before the match started, players were issued with a warning from match referee Ranjan Madugalle about behaviour on the pitch.

"I stressed the importance of the game at a time when cricket needs to be seen in a good light," the Sri Lankan official said.

"I wasn't specific about what I expected but there's a fine line between aggression and sledging.

"I don't want to take the competitive edge out of the game, but this is the first time England have toured here for 13 years and we all know there's a lot of attention on this series," said Madugalle.

"I slightly modified what I normally say to the captains before a match to stress the importance of the game. The players have to act like big boys - I want this series to be remembered for the cricket and nothing else."

Teams England: Nasser Hussain (captain), Michael Atherton, Marcus Trescothick, Alec Stewart, Graham Thorpe, Graeme Hick, Craig White, Ashley Giles, Ian Salisbury, Andrew Caddick, Darren Gough. 12th man: Andrew Flintoff.

Pakistan: Moin Khan (captain), Inzamam-ul-Haq (vice captain), Saeed Anwar, Shahid Afridi, Salim Elahi, Yousuf Youhana, Wasim Akram, Abdur Razzaq, Mushtaq Ahmed, Saqlain Mushtaq, Qaisar Abbas. 12th man: Azhar Mahmood.

Umpires: Darrel Hair (Australia) and Riazuddin (Pakistan) TV umpire: Salim Badar (Pakistan) ICC Match Referee: Ranjan Madugalle (Sri Lanka)