July 28: India with a good performance from all its applied bowlers managed well to restrict England at 169 for seven in the first day of the Second Test at Trent Bridge.
In the rain delayed match India after winning toss opted to bowling first which turned to be a right decision of skipper Rahul Dravid.
Indian seamers - Zaheer Khan, RP Singh and S Sreesanth taking advantage of the condition that was offering plenty of movements, stick to their line and length and brought three top order batsmen down when the score was under 50 runs.
Zaheer got the first two crucial wickets Andrew Strauss (4), England skipper Michael Vaughan (9) easily. In both instances, batman could not held the out-swing delivery and caught in the first slip in the hands of Sachin Tendulkar.
England was two down when Pietersen came who had made an unbeaten century in the second innings of the Lord Test but failed to continue his good form. He was lbw by RP Singh scoring only 13 runs with the help of three boundaries but was not enough to defy the condition that favours the bowler.
It was Alastair Cook and Paul Collingwood who were trying to play safely as per the need of the situation and did contributed a valuable 54-run with partnership.
However, one of Sreesanth’s in-swing deliveries removed the stumps of Collingwood while he was trying to drive, which brought the score board down to 101 at the loss of four wickets. Collingwood made 28 runs.
Soon after Ian Bell joined Alastair Cook, medium pacer Sourav Ganguly sent away Cook lbw when he was seven runs short from a half century.
Leg-spinner Anil Kumble then dismissed Matt Prior in the hands of Dravid at slip and Zaheer later removed Ian Bell (31).
Tendulkar who had earlier caught two smart catches in the slip could not manage to grip a third one of Zaheer’s over and dropped Chris Tremlett.
At the end of the days play Tremlett (16) and Ryan Side Bottom (0) were at the crease to take forward the play in the second day. In the second day India will try to release the last three wickets as soon as possible to take advantage in the second innings after putting a good total on the board.
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