Close India 232 for 6 (Dravid 63, Jaffer 53) and 221 are 336 behind England 487 and 301 for 6 dec (Vaughan 100, Crawley 100*)
scorecard

India's batting woes surfaced for the second time in two days, and England were well on their way to a comprehensive victory at close of play on the fourth day. Matthew Hoggard was the star turn with the ball, dismissing Sachin Tendulkar and Sourav Ganguly off successive balls to snuff out Indian hopes and finish the day with well-deserved figures of 3 for 45.

As in their first innings, India reached 100 for the loss of just one wicket. Wasim Jaffer and Rahul Dravid were going well, and it seemed India would compensate – at least partially – for their dismal first innings performance. That their middle order fell away again was as much a result of poor batting as it was of spirited, and disciplined, bowling by England. Nasser Hussain didn't ask his bowlers to try the short stuff this time, but still kept the runs under check by keeping fielders at the boundary even when he had plenty of runs to defend. It seemed a defensive ploy, but at the end of the day Hussain had the results to show.

India's innings got off to a wobbly start – in the five overs before lunch both Jaffer and Virender Sehwag played and missed plenty of times. Hussain gave Sehwag a second life, dropping him at third slip off Andy Flintoff in the first over after lunch, and that suddenly seemed to break the shackles, as both openers unleashed some authoritative strokes. Jaffer was splendid off the back foot, while Sehwag found his timing with a couple of magnificent drives off Flintoff. The 50 came up in ten overs, before Simon Jones crashed through Sehwag's defences with a quick one that moved in a shade (61 for 1). Sehwag made 27.

Dravid injected his customary solidity to the Indian batting effort, showing excellent technique in defence, but putting away the bad ball when it came along. He began scoring with an elegant straight-drive for three off Jones, then repeated that shot for a boundary in Craig White's next over. On a pitch with increasingly variable bounce, Dravid's technical excellence came to the fore again, and unlike the first innings, he didn't get bogged down.

Dravid's assurance seemed to have calmed Jaffer, who grew in confidence after a hesitant start. Both looked set to take India to tea, when part-time offspinner Michael Vaughan induced an edge from Jaffer and Hussain lapped up the chance at slip (110 for 2).

Tendulkar shaped well in his brief innings – a flowing cover-drive off Jones promised bigger things to come. It was not to be though, when Hoggard produced a peach of a delivery that moved in sharply, clipped Tendulkar's pad and then crashed into middle and off. Hoggard whooped in delight as Tendulkar departed for 12 and continued his poor form at Lord's (140 for 3).

More strife was in store for India, when Ganguly was trapped lbw next ball. It was a poor decision by umpire Rudi Koertzen though – replays showed that the ball had pitched outside leg stump.

Dravid had carried on stoically, and with VVS Laxman looking good too, a fightback was still on. Giles put an end to those hopes, when Dravid inside-edged an attempted cut to be bowled for a polished 63 (165 for 5). The shock on Dravid's face told the story - he looked at his rattled stumps in disbelief, held the bat axe-like in the air for a few seconds, and trudged back disconsolately.

Hoggard had more to cheer when Ajay Ratra was caught magnificently by a diving Mark Butcher at gully for 1 (170 for 6). With only the tail to follow and 17 overs of play left, a four-day win was on the cards. Laxman and Ajit Agarkar scotched those hopes with a stubborn 62-run partnership for the seventh wicket, but with clear weather forecast for the last day, Hussain would have been well satisfied with England's effort.

Earlier in the day, England's batsmen made full use of the 19.4 overs they played, adding 109 runs to stretch their lead to 567. Both Vaughan and John Crawley reached their centuries – for Vaughan it was his second hundred at Lord's this season. He fell immediately after reaching the landmark, scooping Ashish Nehra to Jaffer at backward point, but Crawley and Alec Stewart continued to pummel the hapless Indian attack. Hussain called his batsmen in as soon as Crawley reached his century, giving his bowlers all of 158 overs to take 10 Indian wickets. By the looks of it, England should manage to do the job in less than half that many overs.

S Rajesh is sub editor of Wisden.com in India.

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