The three-day warm-up match between India and second division English County side Leicestershire ended in a draw, with the hosts hammering the Indian bowlers in the final day at the Grace Road Ground on Saturday.
Angus Robson and Greg Smith struck fine centuries for Leicestershire and stitched a 221-run partnership for the second wicket. Both batsmen played with freedom and thrashed a rusty-looking Indian attack to all parts of the ground.
Smith, in particular, took on the Indian bowlers and smashed 17 fours and two sixes en route to his 102-ball 101. The morning session was cut short because of rain but Robson (126) and Smith made the most of the remaining overs, and scored 178 runs in just 30 overs in the second session.
Pankaj Singh, Varun Aaron and Bhuvneshwar Kumar troubled the second division side occasionally but were inconsistent. However, it was Pankaj, who provided the visitors an early breakthrough, when he dismissed skipper Matthew Boyce (4) cheaply.
Making the batsmen play is key to succeeding on the English pitches but Indian bowlers, including Ishant Sharma, failed to hit the right areas consistently. Ishant, in particular, looked wayward all afternoon, although he chipped in with a couple of wickets towards the end of the day.
Robson later pointed out that Indians were swinging the ball in overcast conditions but he took advantage of the fuller length deliveries by them. The 22-year-old targeted Bhuvneshwar in particular as he conceded 46 runs in just seven overs.
"The lengths they bowled this morning were fullish and I was looking to drive as I usually do," Robson said. "After I faced the first couple of overs of Kumar I felt he was a skiddy sort of a bowler and the best way to take him on was to drive him and hit him for a few fours. He swing it around a lot and I felt that If I was stuck around in my crease I was just sitting ducks."
The inexperience of Aaron and Ishwar Pandey was pretty evident when they came out to bowl in the final hour of the match. Aaron was thrashed for 31 runs in six overs, while Pandey was struck for 31 runs in five overs.
Spinner Ravindra Jadeja bowled two overs and conceded 17 runs, while Ashwin gave 10 runs in his two. Stuart Binny bowled four overs.
Earlier on Day 1, the Indian batsmen got good practice when three batsmen - Shikhar Dhawan, Cheteshwar Pujara and Gautam Gambhir - scored fine fifties, while Ajinkya Rahane and Rohit Sharma missed out on half-centuries.
India will face Derbyshire in the second of the warm-up fixtures on 1 July, before facing England in the first Test at Trent Bridge on 9 July.
