NOTTINGHAM: England took two quick wickets after lunch to halt a new-look India’s progress on the opening day of the first Test at Trent Bridge on Wednesday, the visitors reaching 177 for three wickets at tea.

India started in emphatic fashion on the first day of the five-match series, with Murali Vijay hitting three boundaries off the first over bowled by James Anderson.

It was a sign of things to come from Vijay as he went on to hit 92 off 176 balls, with 17 fours, resuming the evening session with Ajinkya Rahane (32) on an unrewarding pitch.

On a flat morning England’s pace attack had struggled to impose themselves against an aggressive India batting display, with Anderson taking the solitary wicket of Shikhar Dhawan (12) before lunch when an outside edge was well-taken by wicketkeeper Matt Prior.

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The hosts came out a different side after lunch and took two wickets for one run in the first three overs of the afternoon session.

Anderson removed the impressive Cheteshwar Pujara (38), who had shared a second-wicket stand of 73 with Vijay, when Ian Bell took a brilliant one-handed diving catch at silly mid-on.

Stuart Broad then had Virat Kohli (1), widely considered India’s biggest threat with the bat in hand, caught at second slip by Bell.

India, who have not won a Test away from home since 2011, handed a debut to all-rounder Stuart Binny while England recalled Ben Stokes in place of Chris Jordan.

The visitors have not played a five-Test series on English soil since 1959 and their last visit in 2011 resulted in a 4-0 whitewash by the hosts.

Scoreboard

INDIA (1st Innings):

M. Vijay not out 92

S. Dhawan c Prior b Anderson 12

C.A. Pujara c Bell b Anderson 38

V. Kohli c Bell b Broad 1

A.M. Rahane not out 32

EXTRAS (LB-2) 2

TOTAL (for three wkts, 59 overs) 177

FALL OF WKTS: 1-33, 2-106, 3-107.

TO BAT: M.S. Dhoni, R.A. Jadeja, S.T.R. Binny, B. Kumar, I. Sharma, Mohammed Shami.

BOWLING (to-date): Anderson 13-3-50-2; Broad 13-6-19-1; Stokes 14-4-37-0; Plunkett 13-3-41-0; Ali 6-0-28-0.

ENGLAND: A.N. Cook, S.D. Robson, G.S. Ballance, I.R. Bell, J.E. Root, Moeen Ali, M.J. Prior, B.A. Stokes, S.C.J. Broad, L.E. Plunkett, J.M. Anderson.

UMPIRES: H.D.P.K. Dharmasena (Sri Lanka) and B.N.J. Oxenford (Australia).

TV UMPIRE: I.J. Gould (England).

MATCH REFEREE: D.C. Boon (Australia).

Published in Dawn, July 10th , 2014