By Ed Osmond
LONDON, July 16 (Reuters) - Australia's Chris Rogers finally scored the big hundred he so craved in a brilliant innings of 158 not out against England in the second Ashes test at Lord's on Thursday.
The 37-year-old left-hander, apparently doomed to be a one-test wonder for most of his career, used all his experience to strike 25 crisp fours around the home of cricket and put his team in complete control of the match.
"It's one of the proudest moments of my career," Rogers told reporters.
"I got a hundred at the MCG (Melbourne Cricket Ground), then at the SCG (Sydney Cricket ground) and to get one here... it's so special."
Rogers, short-sighted and colour blind, played one test against India in Perth in 2008 before being recalled by Australia for the first Ashes test at Trent Bridge in 2013.
He has since played 20 more tests and, having represented English county Middlesex, is very familiar with conditions at the Lord's ground.
"I've got a lot of support here, a lot of friends, and it just feels amazing to do it. I missed out last game and played a couple of bad shots leading into it. It's important I got one here."
Rogers has scored eight fifties in his last nine test innings but had not gone on to record a century in that rich run of form.
The compact left-hander made 95 in the first innings in the last test in Cardiff before scoring just 10 in the second but he eased past three figures and his previous test best score of 119 in a 259-run partnership with Steve Smith at Lord's.
Rogers, who has now made five test hundreds, believes the wicket will assist Australian spinner Nathan Lyon in the closing stages of the match.
"It's probably not a traditional Lord's county wicket -- it's drier than usual," Rogers said.
"Even the last test we played here it spun big towards the back end. Hopefully, it will again." (Editing by Toby Davis)