Australia's Steve Smith Twists Knife and Accuses Alastair Cook of Negativity

England were left to reflect on a chastening first day of the second Ashes Test at Lord's and accusations of negativity as twin centuries from Chris Rogers and Steve Smith saw Australia fight back from their Cardiff defeat and reach an imposing 337 for one at stumps. (Cook's secret weapon - a 15-year-old Indian)

Rogers batted through three sessions and will resume on 158, with Steve Smith hitting 129 not out, as Alastair Cook's attack struggled for impact on a featherbed. Between them the pair added an unbroken 259 runs for the second wicket, with the latter keen to twist the knife further after the close with a critique of the England captain's field placings.

"I was a little surprised [the England head coach] Trevor Bayliss allowed Alastair Cook to have a deep point for as long as he did," said Smith, who has previously played under Bayliss at New South Wales. "It was a good pitch to bat on but I thought they got defensive quite quickly and I know that is something we are not going to do."

Rogers, who helped inflict England's first single-wicket day of the Ashes since Headingley in 1993, believes he and his batting partner have provided the perfect response to the 169-run defeat in the first Test, sending a message to the Australian dressing room in the process.

"It was not only to prove something to other people but to ourselves," said Rogers. "We came here on the crest of a wave and thought we would take England down. The loss [in Cardiff] put us back in our place and made us question ourselves.

"If you are having a tough time it comes down to individuals to respond. Hopefully Steve and I have made a statement and have shown our dressing room we can get the upper hand on England," he added.

"It was a good toss to win," said Smith, who at 26 years and 44 days became the third youngest Australian to reach 10 Test centuries. "We made the most of the first day. We didn't play as well as we could in Cardiff and copped a lot. It was important to start this Test well, hopefully we can capitalise and make the most of it in the morning."

"It's a good wicket with very little seam movement," offered Jimmy Anderson, who fronted up for the England team after a day of toil . "It's the sort of wicket where you have to bowl accurately and we didn't do that. When you don't against world-class opposition you get punished."

Anderson, who saw Rogers edge over the slips third ball, claims his team-mates will arrive at the ground on Friday morning with smiles on their faces and insists any talk of defeat is premature until England's batsmen have had their say.

"It's one day. We know if we win the next four we will win the Test match," he said. "We have our backs against the wall. We have to front up and take some wickets. Do that and we can fight our way back into the Test."

Asked about the accusation of being too defensive, too quickly, Anderson added: "Setting fields on a wicket like that is always tricky - you have to balance attack and defence. The nicks weren't carrying so well and it didn't feel like a nick-off wicket. We tried to create pressure in other ways.

"All we can do is turn up with smile on our faces and with a new-ish ball, we are going to try and bowl as well as well can. If we can make inroads, who knows? It's difficult to judge a pitch when one side has batted on it.

"I wouldn't choose to bowl on that wicket but that's what we've been given. Test cricket is about adapting. We didn't bowl well enough to create enough pressure and take wickets. They were more than capable of punishing us. The two guys played brilliantly."

Rogers can now reflect on his highest Test score in what the 37-year-old has previously claimed will be his last series in international cricket and later admitted days like that could yet prompt a rethink.

"People had criticised me for saying it's my last series but I am really focused - I want to make it count," he said. "It is a special series to be a part of, let's get through it and see where we are after that. If it is going to be my last series, I wanted to contribute. It's a great achievement to bat through a whole day."

Asked about the solitary wicket of David Warner, who fell for 38 attempting to slog a third four off Moeen Ali's first over, Rogers replied: "Davy will kick himself - it was an opportunity to go big."