Rocky Flintoff hit his maiden century for the England Lions on Day 2 of the tour match against Cricket Australia XI at Allen Border Field in Brisbane. Batting first, the hosts posted 214 runs on the board in the first innings. England Lions had a decent start with the bat in the second innings as captain Alex Davies made 76 runs. Later, Freddie McCann scored 51 as the visitors looked to be well in control.
However, the team lost a few quick wickets and they were suddenly under immense pressure. That’s when Rocky Flintoff, son of legendary cricketer Andrew Flintoff stepped up and played some beautiful cricket. He hit back at the Australian bowlers, who looked clueless against Rocky for the majority part of the time. Interestingly, the youngster also played similar shots as his father and scored 108 runs to help the England Lions post 316 runs on the board.
With the century, Rocky, 16, achieved a remarkable feat by becoming the youngest player to score a century for England A or Lions. His father Andrew at 20 years of age had set the record 27 years ago with a century against Kenya in 1998. Decades later, Rocky surpassed him and etched his name in the record books.
England managed a lead of 102 runs in the first innings and that will help them tremendously in the remainder of the game. Cricket Australia XI needed a strong start but captain Henry Hunt departed after scoring only one. The hosts posted 33/1 and are trailing by 69 runs at the end of the day’s play.
Meanwhile, England internationals Shoaib Bashir and Josh Tongue are part of the playing XI. The idea behind the move is to test their potential on Australian soil as the senior team is set to travel Down Under for a five-match marquee series later in the year.