England aim to extend series lead

Bristol, 24 August 2007

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Second one-day international, Bristol:
England v India
Match starts 1430 BST Friday

England will look to build on their convincing win at the Rose Bowl when they take on India in the second match of their one-day series in Bristol.

The manner of their 104-run victory, and the return of Andrew Flintoff, has boosted the side's self confidence.

"We performed well the other day but we're moving on now and it's very important to put on another performance of that standard.

"If we do that, we'll be very difficult to beat," paceman Stuart Broad said.

Interview: Stuart Broad Interview: India captain Rahul Dravid

Broad's preparations for the game have been overshadowed by news of his move from Leicestershire to Notts, but he insisted he was fully focused on trying to repeat the tight new ball spell he produced in the opening game.

"We're very focused within the camp on what we have to do - we're a confident squad, we're an energetic squad and we're enjoying our cricket at the moment," he commented.

The 21-year-old was wicket-less at the Rose Bowl, but is relishing the opportunity to bowl to the likes of Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly and Rahul Dravid and intends to make his mark this time.

"You dream of testing yourself against the best. I'm running in as hard as I ever do, bowl the way I can and try to nick them off - you don't get more of an incentive to maybe get Rahul or Sachin out," he added.

England are likely to be unchanged, with coach Peter Moores again looking forward to seeing Flintoff in action following his recovery from ankle surgery.

The Lancashire all-rounder bowled in excess of 90mph in Tuesday's match and Moores said: "It was Freddie at his best wasn't it? He really put the Indian batsmen under pressure.

"It's no secret that having Fred in our side makes us a far better side - he's a one-off and any side would love to have him, we're just lucky he's English."

All four games England have played at Bristol have been won by the side batting second and the toss could be vital to the outcome of the day-night encounter.

India skipper Rahul Dravid has urged his side to improve their fielding and running between the wickets, but their prospects have been hit by a flu outbreak affecting five members of the squad, including Tendulkar and senior seamer Zaheer Khan.

Dravid, meanwhile, admitted his side's one-day form had been inconsistent over the past year, but dismissed suggestions that his side might be "shell-shocked" after such a heavy defeat in the opening game of the series.

"We know they are a very good team and they've got some key players back, which makes a big difference for them, but we're not shell-shocked at all. We know that can happen in the one-day game and we've just got to bounce back quickly," Dravid told BBC Sport.

"We have been a bit more consistent in Test cricket over the last couple of years. We're third in the Test rankings and sixth in the one-dayers, and that's probably a reflection of our performances."

Dravid said India needed to achieve "parity" in the series as soon as possible, and were hoping for a boost from the weather.

"It was really cold out there in the last game. It wasn't the best conditions for us but it's part of the challenge of learning how to play here," he added.

India have played at Bristol twice before - winning matches against Kenya and Sri Lanka in 1999 and 2002, and scoring in excess of 300 on both occasions.

Source: BBC Sport