When Michael Vaughan came to the crease on his Test debut, at Johannesburg in 1999-2000, England were 2 for 2 against Allan Donald and Shaun Pollock on a damp seamer. By the time he faced his first ball, they had slumped to 2 for 4, with four England captains (Atherton, Butcher, Hussain, Stewart) all back in the hutch. And by the time he had gritted his teeth for a vital 33, demonstrating along the way an awareness of his off stump and an unflustered understanding of the job at hand, he had been earmarked as Mike Atherton's heir apparent. Today, on the ground where Atherton scored five of his 16 Test hundreds, including 160 when India were last here, in 1996, Vaughan scaled heights that his predecessor never dreamt of. Athers came close on one memorable occasion in 1995, lacing an astonishing 127 against Ambrose and co in a one-dayer at Lord's, but in Test cricket, he never dared let his heart rule his head. If Atherton, of all people, gave it away, so, almost inevitably, would England.

But Vaughan has no such concerns. A youthful senior player in a team that is rapidly losing its fear of failure, he has the confidence and context to play exactly as he damn well pleases. This makes for some unfortunate dismissals from time to time – his handled the ball in Bangalore for example, or the rush of blood that deprived him of a maiden double century today. But when you have scored four centuries in your last six Tests in England, all the time batting with a languor not seen since the days of David Gower, nobody's looking at the small change.

In the austerity of the 1990s, Atherton's solidity, coupled first with Graham Gooch's blacksmith power then Alec Stewart's rich strokeplay, were said to produce the perfect opening partnership. And indeed, that prototype had been carried into the 21st century as well, with Vaughan's regular partner, Marcus Trescothick, being described as a left-handed version of Gooch. But Trescothick has known hard times along the way as well – his 66 on debut at Old Trafford in 2000 came despite a spell of 7-7-0-3 from Courtney Walsh, and Trescothick had to wait 11 overs to score his first Test run. But the way he and Vaughan are both playing at the moment, England suddenly have two openers for the price of one.

And, if success breeds success, then Rob Key's maiden innings can only be a good omen. Like his senior partners, his awareness of his off stump was impeccable, and it required a touch of misfortune – coupled with a slightly indecisive shot selection – to prise him from the crease for a hard-earned 17. The heirs of Athers are playing the game at their own level.

Andrew Miller is editorial assistant of Wisden.com

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