With its cotton industry, history and smog, Kanpur has been described as the Manchester of the East, a comparison that is somewhat less flattering to the English city than its supposed twin. But what England would give to be in Manchester tomorrow when they try to end the run of form of Yuvraj Singh that has illuminated the start of the one-day series.

Stuart Broad sounded rueful when he was asked yesterday whether he could see a chink in the technique of Yuvraj, who followed his 138 not out in Rajkot by scoring 118 in Indore two days ago. “At Old Trafford last year, Andrew Flintoff bowled short and he [Yuvraj] struggled,” Broad said. “On these slow pitches, unfortunately, it is hard to get it up his nose.”

Bowlers including Broad will take little consolation from knowing that vulnerability against the bouncer has held back Yuvraj in Test cricket - that and the presence of some of the finest batsmen in India's history. The line of attack instead lies in variations of pace and disguise or, as Broad put it: “Keep him guessing and hope he nicks one.” A thin edge eventually brought about his downfall in Indore.

That wicket should have done Broad immense good having suffered the ignominy of conceding six sixes in an over to the same batsman at the ICC World Twenty20 in Durban last year. Broad recovered remarkably swiftly and is now fifth in the Reliance Mobile one-day international bowling rankings. And any vestiges of self-doubt where Yuvraj is concerned must have been removed with Matt Prior's catch on Monday.

At 22, Broad is set for a long international career, even if the remaining five games of the series go as badly as the first two for England. He is a quick learner and received another lesson after the match on Monday when the match referee, Roshan Mahanama, told him to show more respect to umpires. Mahanama had already warned Harbhajan Singh, the India off-spin bowler, for giving a send-off to Samit Patel after the first game.

Broad was unhappy when Russell Tiffin turned down a leg-before appeal against Rohit Sharma and then again when the same umpire called a wide. “He [Mahanama] reminded me that I was on TV and should not be showing my disappointment,” Broad said. “It was a heat-of-the-moment thing, I don't think I did anything particularly wrong, but I have to smile rather than look disappointed.”

The jovial Mahanama said that Broad was close to a level-one offence, which could have brought a fine. “He is young, so I thought a quiet word to nip it in the bud was the best approach,” Mahanama said. “I know he is a competitive player, but we all have to make sure the game is played in the right way.” Broad can be thankful that his father, Chris, the equivalent of a hanging judge on the ICC refereeing panel, was not in charge.

England are likely to make at least one change in personnel and possibly more in the batting order tomorrow. They have erred in omitting Graeme Swann and overestimating the danger of Patel, who has greater potential as a batting all-rounder than a frontline spinner. James Anderson has been largely ineffective on pitches offering no seam movement and conditions have not helped swing. Stephen Harmison has also struggled to impose himself.

The biggest concern on the batting front lies in the relatively sedate approach to the early overs. All of India's top four have faster scoring rates this year than Kevin Pietersen, England's captain and most explosive hitter. In part these statistics reflect that England play on seaming pitches in the summer where more vigilance is required. But the approach of Ian Bell and others can certainly be more aggressive on this tour.

India have withdrawn their request to put back the start of the first Test by 24 hours to allow a day's rest after the Champions League final on December 10, when Mahendra Singh Dhoni, the captain, may be required by Chennai Super Kings. Lalit Modi, the Indian Premier League chairman, said: “We looked at rationalising the schedule, but it is not possible.”Strike-rates of the India and England top fours in all one-day internationals in 2008

India

Virender Sehwag 123.60

Gautam Gambhir 90.10

Suresh Raina 95.42

Yuvraj Singh 98.09

England

Ian Bell 72.99

Matt Prior 79.13

Owais Shah 81.27

Kevin Pietersen 84.77

All measured in runs per hundred balls