England on ropes after Cook's blunder

An opening day of castigation and celebration at Eden Park saw Peter Fulton score a maiden Test hundred and left Alastair Cook wondering why he had given him the chance to do so.

Cook's call was the worst insertion in England history after New Zealand ended play on 250 for one.

You might argue over the degree of his liability but it was the most runs England have conceded in a day where they have put the opposition in and taken one or fewer wickets. Australia scored 200 for one in Adelaide in 1959, after Peter May had bowled first in 90F (32C) heat, a decision that led to them losing the match and the Ashes, but there are no other examples of so few wickets having fallen on an opening day unaffected by rain.

Arguably the most notorious recent occasion where things went awry after inserting the opposition was the Gabba Test of 2002-03. Nasser Hussain admitted to making that decision after looking into his players' eyes and seeing they were not ready to bat first against Glenn McGrath, Jason Gillespie and Shane Warne. Cook had no such uncertainty but if he had looked up after he had called the toss correctly, he would have seen a cloudless blue sky, normally a harbinger of good batting conditions.

Cook will have been influenced in his decision to bowl first, the first toss of the series he has won, after being frustrated in Wellington by a pitch that got more benign as the match unfolded. Brendon McCullum had put England into bat in the two previous Tests and more or less confirmed he would do the same here on Thursday, suggesting pitches in New Zealand have more for bowlers early on.

Cook would have noted that, as well as the tendency for drop-in pitches to begin damper than other surfaces because of their need to be pliable in order to be dropped into place without cracking. But theory and stats can only give a person so much mitigation and if he expected the Garden of Eden for his bowlers he got Eden Gardens instead, the scoreboard telling its own damning story.

To be fair to him, putting opponents in has worked pretty well for England of late. Since the Hussain debacle in Brisbane they have done it in 18 Tests, winning seven and losing one. Usually, there is some seam movement to justify it, though not here where even the new ball seemed neutered.

His bowlers, while not exactly letting him down here, did not bowl as well as they can. Fine performer that he is, James Anderson has missed Graeme Swann since the off-spinner left for elbow surgery, not so much for any advice he might dispense but for the way he prevents the introvert in Anderson from dominating matters. Yesterday (Friday), that introvert came to the fore once more, though he did fling the ball at Fulton in anger and frustration, under the guise of trying to throw down the stumps.

Stuart Broad has been back close to his best in the opening two Tests, but he could not ratchet up the pressure for long enough on such a benign pitch. He struck Hamish Rutherford in the grille with a bouncer but that was about his only victory of the day.

Steven Finn took the only wicket, when he had Rutherford caught by Cook at first slip slashing at a good-length ball, but the tall fast bowler has not delivered in the Tests on the promise he showed in the one-day matches. His shortened run was an ongoing project that seemed to be on course for success, though it has faltered, judging from his lack of rhythm and consistent pace in the Tests.

The seamers' lack of penetration meant Monty Panesar probably bowled more than he or his captain would have liked on the opening day. With no spin, he was targeted by the batsmen eyeing the short, straight boundaries, Rutherford striking him for two sixes in an over during the morning and Fulton for two later on.

His hundred was a wonderful achievement for a man who has hitherto been little more than a journeyman after 13 Tests in seven years. For someone who began the series with a Test average of 21 he has looked well-organised and ready to attack, something he did with great flair yesterday, striking three sixes and 15 fours in his 124. His previous best was 75.

His efforts, well-supported by Kane Williamson, who made 83, have left England needing something special with bat and ball, if they are to depart New Zealand with a series win.

The world record number of sixes in a Test is 26, in the 2006 Test between India and Pakistan in Faisalabad. Five were struck here on the opening day which places it on course, given there are plenty of good ball strikers like McCullum and Jonny Bairstow to come.