Pitches in India can be notoriously hard to read but the ugly, lined surface prepared for the second one-day international resembles a child's scribble. Although the groundsman has said that mosaic-like cracks will hold together for the duration of the contest, the temptation for whoever wins the toss, as Paul Collingwood said, must be to put runs on the board and hope for variable bounce from the seamers and turn for the spinners later on.

Collingwood suggested that England will not make too many - if any - changes despite the magnitude of defeat in Rajkot on Friday. They seem to be playing mind games with India over the fitness of Ryan Sidebottom, who has bowled only two competitive overs since the end of July. Peter Moores, the head coach, hinted on Saturday that Indore is a little too soon for Sidebottom to make a comeback. Collingwood, however, reported that the left-arm bowler is now 100 per cent ready - but only after checking with team spokesman Andrew Walpole, a doctor of spin rather than fitness.

Sidebottom has struggled to build on his brilliant year in 2007, but he offers a different angle of attack and can swing the ball. England lacked variety in Rajkot, where Zaheer Khan made decisive inroads with a similar line. The abrasions in the pitch here should also mean more grip and success for those attempting cutters, a method of attack perfected by Sidebottom in Sri Lanka last year. Collingwood himself can expect to bowl more than a single over this time.

The performances of Ian Bell and Matt Prior will come under greater scrutiny after the way that Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir set up India's mammoth total of 387-5 two days ago. The Indian pair should expect to face more bouncers this time, while both Bell and Prior worked on aggressive shots in the nets. Incidentally, the scoreboard was deliberately set at 388 for the duration of England's practice yesterday, courtesy of a cheeky operator.

India themselves are expected to rest Ishant Sharma for a second game, while Yuvraj Singh will probably face a late test on the back he injured at Rajkot. During the flight on Saturday Yuvraj still wore the support he strapped around the injured area during his breathtaking 138 not out - but the ailment did not prevent him from carrying a pair of pads, a CD player and a small kit bag as he disembarked the plane.