WARWICKSHIRE’S Rob Yates admitted it was ‘awesome’ to be batting alongide Tom Latham as he scored a century on debut for the Bears.
Latham’s ton came as Warwickshire reached 364 for four against Surrey on the opening day of their Rothesay County Championship Division One match at Edgbaston.
New Zealand batter Latham struck an unbeaten 139 (244 balls) after Surrey chose to bowl on another superb batting pitch.
Yates scored 86 (from 151 balls) against the champions’ much-changed team with Ollie Pope, Jamie Smith and Gus Atkinson having departed on England duty.
Against a Surrey attack including debutant Nathan Smith. Warwickshire started serenely as Yates and Alex Davies (45, 58) gathered an untroubled 70 in 19 overs. Davies twice hoisted Jordan Clark for six over the short Hollies Stand boundary but departed in angst after swinging and missing at a full toss from Dan Lawrence.
Yates and Latham added 112 before the former departed in a different type of angst to this captain. With a century beckoning, he tickled an unthreatening leg-side delivery from Tom Lawes to the wicketkeeper.
A Latham century looked likely from the moment he took guard. He moved sweetly into the 40s, took a breather and spent 35 balls there, then pulled Clark for six to reach his half-century and galloped from 50 to 80 in another 18 balls. It was batting of simple, solid, unhurried class.
Yates said: “We got off to a brisk start with Alex putting away the short ones and punishing anything overpitched. It was good to get another 50 partnership up top.
“Then it was awesome to be out there with Tom. He looked class which was no surprise – he plays the ball so late and times it beautifully.
“We’ve had a good start to the season and to have the likes of Beau and Tom coming into the side is great. Beau made a match-winning contribution on his debut last week and hopefully Tom’s will turn out to be the same this week.
“I was pleased with the way I batted but a bit frustrated to leave maybe 80 out there. But we are in a decent position after the first day. It’s not easy to take wickets on this pitch and I think you have to be creative and also patient at the same time. You just have to go about it in a smart way.”
The Bears are without seamer Michael Booth who will be sidelined for two to three months by a stress fracture of the ankle.
Barbados-born Che Simmons came into the team for his home Championship debut.
Surrey’s rejigged bowling attack, with Smith on his debut and Lawes and Cameron Steel each playing their first game of the season, persevered nobly. Sam Hain flicked Clark straight to backward square leg and Lawrence bowled Beau Webster with a beauty through the gate.
But Ed Barnard (38, 63) joined the implacable Latham to add an unbroken 83 in the last 24 overs of the day.
Latham reached his 27th first class century from 161 balls to emulate his countryman Jeetan Patel in making a ton on his Warwickshire debut.
Whether Latham matches Patel’s subsequent haul of 742 wickets for the club remains to be seen, but he has immediately provided the top order ballast they badly need.
