Tredwell impressed by Kerrigan

James Tredwell had never even met Simon Kerrigan before they joined the England Lions squad last weekend.

But the Kent off-spinner is already impressed by the young slow left-armer who took six wickets in Australia A's first innings.

Tredwell was full of praise for his team-mate as the home side finished the third day at Old Trafford with a lead of 196 runs.

Kerrigan's six for 59 helped the Lions restrict the tourists to 277 in reply to 315 and the home side closed the day on 158 for three, with Joe Root scoring 70 and Jonny Bairstow unbeaten on 73.

"Simon's picked up his wickets today and he fully deserved to," said Tredwell, who also took three for 93.

"He bowls at a nice pace which makes it hard for the batter because there's not much time to change your decision, particularly on a wicket offering a bit of turn.

"Once it breaks and turns you want to beat the batsman in his decision-making. Simon can bowl in a variety of different ways and also bowl cutter deliveries which on a real dry wicket can be really beneficial because on that surface some turn and some don't.

"He can bowl in a variety of different ways on a variety of different pitches and he seems to have shown that, even in this game."

However, Tredwell admitted that the pair had had to work hard for their success, especially against Australia A skipper Ed Cowan whose 99 had helped his side reach 277.

"Ed played me very well yesterday and the one that got him turned and bounced and flicked the glove. It was a beauty. I got him out rather him getting himself out, I think," said Tredwell.

"It was nice to bowl in tandem with another spinner and grind people down, especially on a helpful wicket like that.

"I think we've bowled really well in partnership. The wicket didn't turn as much as we thought after the Australia innings and in fact it was only the odd one that turned today, which was better for us in a way because it kept the batsmen on their toes.

"Generally it's a slow turner but the odd one kicks and if we get a good lead here hopefully a newer ball will

do a bit more and do it a bit quicker tomorrow.

"It would be nice to take this pitch around with us because we haven't had a great deal of bowling on wickets like this and it's nice to get one that's in your favour a bit."

Kerrigan, who was not told he was playing in the game until 45 minutes before the scheduled start on Tuesday, was keen to return the compliments to his new-found spin partner.

"It's the first time I've seen James bowl and I've been really impressed with the control he shown to right-handers," he said.

"If there's anything I struggle with, it's keeping my line as a slow left-armer bowling into the left handers' rough and James showed his experience in the way he bowled maidens.

"It's bit like bowling with Gary Keedy in that they both like to get it up and down, use subtle variations and beat both edges of the bat.

"We bowled quite well together and built pressure. The wicket's so dry that it'll crumble in the last couple of sessions."