England and West Indies players were left confused after the decision to reverse Ramnaresh Sarwan's lbw on the second day of the first Test.

Steve Harmison trapped Sarwan when on five, but the verdict was overturned after the batsman had the decision referred to the third umpire.

"I'm not a big fan but after today I'll take it," said Sarwan of the trial system after scoring an unbeaten 74.

But England's Matt Prior said: "We thought it was absolutely plumb."

Five referrals came in a one-hour spell, with two towards the end of the England innings and three early in the West Indies reply, with each decision taking several minutes.

After England had made 318 - including an impressive 64 from wicketkeeper Prior - they were the first to benefit from the referral system.

606: DEBATE Maybe just one referral per team is the way to go Mittheimp

Andrew Flintoff had an lbw decision on Devon Smith initially rejected by New Zealand umpire Tony Hill but the 'not out' decision was overturned.

But they were denied a second wicket with the score on 24 when Hill chose to overturn his initial inkling to give Sarwan out lbw to Harmison after receiving advice from television official Daryl Harper.

"It's brilliant when it goes your way, you're punching the air, but when it goes against you, it's not so great," reflected Prior. "But that's cricket.

"It didn't feel any different to when you appeal, you think it's really close, and it's given not out.

"It is always strange when something is used for the first time. A lot of the players have sympathy for the umpires because they're making tricky decisions.

"We have just had an afternoon of trying to make decisions in a split second and it's not easy. Everyone makes mistakes and players make more than umpires in a day."

England lost their other challenge afforded by the system when Flintoff, the best of the tourists' attack, contested another Hill decision, whose judgment of the ball pitching outside leg-stump to Sarwan was shown to be correct.

"Fred felt pretty strong about it, so he made the call," added Prior.

"I wasn't sure about it but he felt pretty confident and guys have been given responsibility to make the calls."

West Indies look on course for a first-innings lead after Sarwan and captain Chris Gayle went on to dominate, finishing the second day on 160 for one, a deficit of just 158.

"It was a very tough wicket to bat on," Sarwan added. "I was nervous and things kept going through my head as to whether I was out or not. There was a little bit of luck on my side.

"Now it's important to get some partnerships going so that we can strengthen our position."

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