India vs England, 4th Test, Nagpur is must win game for team India to level this series. Alastair Cook's side has been in spectacular form, and the skipper has led from the front. Two consecutive losses, the first time against England on homes soil since the 1976-77 Test series, has forced India to make a few radical changes. Yuvraj Singh, who fared better than Sachin Tendulkar and Virat Kohli but still didn't enjoy the best of times with the bat, has been dropped from the squad.
England have won the toss and elected to bat, Piyush Chawla and Ravindra Jadeja come in place of Zaheer and Yuvraj and Finn and Samit out, Bresnan and Root in.
On Lunch England score are 61/2 (32 overs)
India will be happy with this session. They lost the toss and have got 2 early wickets, including that of Cook. Ishant Sharma - the lone pacer in the eleven - was the wicket-taker on both occasions. The spinners were tight but haven't managed to trouble the batsmen yet. Jonathan Trott and Pietersen are slowly settling down and will look to rebuild the innings.
On Tea Time England are 133/4 (65 overs)
India have picked up 2 more wickets and England are making slow progress. Pietersen is still there, and he is the key for England. The pitch is slow and the bounce is uneven
On Day 1 stumps England are 199/5 (97 overs)
India's over-rate has been brilliant and this is why they bowled more than 90 overs. Pietersen departed for a well-made 73 to Ravindra Jadeja. Joe Root and Matt Prior ensured that England suffered no further jolts with an unbeaten 60 run stand. Ishant Sharma was the pick of the bowlers and he got the ball to reverse swing. The Indian spinners stifled the flow of runs and England will have to bat very well to ensure they reach a score close to 300 on a pitch that is very slow and low.
Pietersen is renowned for his tremendous ability to take the attack to the opposition, but he showcased that he can also defend brilliantly and that he has the patience to wear out an attack. He scored 73 off 188 deliveries at a rather surprising strike rate of under 38, but his 10 hits to the fence proved to be a constant reminder to the Indian team about the threat he possesses. No wonder the Indians celebrated wildly when they saw the back of the swashbuckling batsman.
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