If the 124-run loss to the Mumbai second string on Tuesday really was the wake-up call described by Kevin Pietersen then his sleepy side must have hit the snooze button by mistake. Alarm bells rang again in Rajkot, louder and longer in what was almost the heaviest defeat ever suffered by England in one-day cricket.

The theory that an underprepared squad would be magically lifted into a fully-operational unit by the beguiling atmosphere that always pervades an Indian presence was well and truly debunked. Reality must have dawned as bowlers came sweetly onto the bats of Yuvraj Singh and his colleagues. And then again as England's demoralised top-order batsmen floundered.

From management downwards, England are sensitive to criticism that the Stanford commitment was a distraction that will carry far-reaching and negative consequences. But something has changed between the success against South Africa at the end of last season, and now. Players were confused about their purpose in Antigua and the timing of the week eroded into days that could have been spent over here.

Of course, Yuvraj had to play outstandingly to record the fastest hundred against England, from 64 balls. Even with a brace around his back and his movement restricted he had a stroke for every occasion, even digging out yorkers with such sweet timing that the ball glided across a swift outfield. Equally, it is hard to remember England appealing so little during a full 50 overs in the field. They just didn't create chances.

The ball failed to seam or swing as Pietersen hoped. That may have been different had India bowled first given the way that Zaheer Khan and Munaf Patel produced edges from the England top three. James Anderson and Stuart Broad posed a benign threat, Stephen Harmison lost control and even Flintoff was left dumbstruck by the range of Yuvraj's game. Never before have England conceded as many as the 387 here.

It needed Pietersen to score a big hundred for England to threaten but, the day after giving a glowing endorsement of Ravi Bopara, he was foolishly run out by the Essex player. The brilliant throw by Rohit Sharma showed not only that India are improving in the field but served to remind how well their own batsmen had taken singles during the first innings. Far from sating their appetite, the Test win against Australia has heightened their taste for success.