It is hard not to feel some sympathy for India as their nightmare tour continues at Edgbaston in the Third Test. England's pursuit of the number one ranking in Test cricket has been nothing but ruthless, with the top order batsmen punishing the Indians for their below par first innings total of 244 on day one. Led by Alastair Cook (182*), the home side finished day two on 456-3 for a lead of 232.
Yesterday, it was Stuart Broad and Tim Bresnan who led the way for England, taking four wickets apiece as the powerhouses in the India batting line-up once more failed to fire. Virender Sehwag's much-discussed return lasted just one ball, Sachin Tendulkar was dismissed for 1 and even Rahul Dravid could not stand in England's way. Captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni cut loose for a brutal 77 but the damage had been done. The only criticism that could be levelled at England was that India were allowed to climb from 111-7 to 244 all out.
Resuming on day two at 84-0, England motored on. Andrew Strauss set the tone with 87 before being bowled by Amit Mishra off a no ball that went undetected, while Cook put his disappointing series behind him by battling through to a 213-ball ton. Ian Bell made a breezy 34 but his dismissal - bowled by Praveen Kumar - brought a pumped up Kevin Pietersen to the crease. Pietersen thumped a 53-ball fifty which took yet more fight out of the Indian attack. The body language for the tourists has reflected both the poor preparation ahead of this series and just how badly their confidence has been hit by the first two Test defeats. They seem a team in tatters and counting the days until the ODI series.
Pietersen fell for 63 but with the lead already at 150, it did little to stem England's momentum. Cook ploughed on, past 150 and onto 182* while Eoin Morgan raced to an unbeaten 44. With Ravi Bopara and Matt Prior waiting in the wings, England will look to bat all day tomorrow. For India, the misery continues. Day three should be more of the same.
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