Mumbai memory offers England hope

India's victory in the opening Test in Ahmedabad went perfectly to plan. England capitulated against India's spinners, just as everybody suspected they might, and even Alastair Cook's wonderfully defiant hundred after England followed on had the air of a new Test captain merely delaying the inevitable.

It will all deepen the conviction that India are strong favourites in this four-Test series, poised to avenge their thrashing in England last summer. But Mumbai always has good bounce and urban legend has it that early morning moisture and a final-session sea breeze often keep the seamers interested. England won here in 2006 and, if it was four surprisingly cheap wickets for Shaun Udal's offspin that attracted the attention, India's collapse to 100 all out in their second innings had been sparked by the pace of Andrew Flintoff and James Anderson.

It would be doubly unfortunate for England if they compounded their error in not playing two spinners in Ahmedabad by opting this time for two seamers just when conditions most favoured pace bowling. But as green as the pitch looked on practice day, it is expected to be shaved bare by the start of play. MS Dhoni, unsurprisingly, wants it to spin.

Form guide

India: WWWLL (Completed matches, most recent first)
England: LLDLD