Live commentary, scorecard and stats I Mike Atherton's analysis I Did Collingwood get the worst umpiring decision of the year? I Winning the toss could yet prove England's saving grace

It would be easy to underestimate Kevin Pietersen's contribution to this day's play. A tortuous stay of 33 balls for four runs was not what he had in mind for his first innings as England captain in an overseas Test. But his effort with the bat was insignificant compared to what he did before play by winning an absolutely crucial toss.

To describe the pitch at the MA Chidambaram Stadium as underprepared is more a statement of the obvious than a criticism. Fifteen days ago, the groundsman was working on getting his square ready for Champions League Twenty20 matches, not a five-day Test. Unsurprisingly it was dry and ripe for spin, enough to persuade England to name an XI containing two slow bowlers a day in advance and India to throw the ball to four spinners inside the first two sessions of play.

This was not, then, a surface on which anyone would chose to bat second, so Pietersen's success with the coin was vital to England's chances. The fact that they squandered a wonderful opportunity after their openers had posted a century stand (and in the process confirmed India's problems bowling at left-handers) does not disqualify the point. Such is India's strength in spin, England simply could not afford to see their opponents have best use of the conditions.

India, many people's world champions elect, are not yet so strong in bowling that they can be sure of dismissing opponents cheaply on good first-day surfaces. In the recent series against Australia, they bowled first only once and were kept in the field for 150 overs. At this same venue earlier in the year, it took them 152.5 overs to dismiss South Africa for 540. So England should have known what was possible.

If Pietersen winning the toss was England's first piece of luck, their second was having Andrew Strauss at the top of the order. Strauss has had his setbacks over the past couple of years - twice passed over for the captaincy, once dropped from the side altogether - but he remains a captain's favourite lieutenant, excellent in a crisis.

This, in fact, was a crisis within a crisis: a match played inside a ring of steel, by two teams short of cricket. But this was right up the street of Strauss, who spoke well last week about it being the "duty" of the players to return to India and give the public there some cricket after the tragedy in Mumbai. Having not been involved in the one-dayers, Strauss was shorter of cricket than most; he had not taken part in a serious game in ten weeks. But he is a perfectionist at making ugly runs when they are needed.

Of Strauss's 12 previous Test centuries, eight were made in a winning cause and four in games that were drawn. More striking still is his ability to play match-shaping innings on the first day of games. Johannesburg 2004 and the Oval 2005 were matches made memorable for other reasons, but both began with Strauss centuries. And remember Mumbai 2006: England's last Test win on the subcontinent started with Strauss scoring 128 after Rahul Dravid had, astonishingly, invited his opponents to bat first.

So Strauss knew exactly what was required. He began more quietly than Alastair Cook, being clearly outscored by him for most of the second hour until a late flurry brought him level on 31 at lunch, but Strauss's decision-making was always better. Cook might have been caught off a horrible miscued drive against Amit Mishra and when he lost his wicket it was misjudging a slog-sweep of the sort Strauss played well all day.

For a man whose preparations were confined to a handful of net sessions, Strauss was particularly positive against the spinners. He took two boundaries off Mishra's first over, and also off Harbhajan Singh's first over after lunch, and Virender Sehwag was treated to a similarly brusque welcome when he was given a token over just before tea.

Strauss advanced by 62 during the afternoon session, a terrific effort, and England were sitting pretty at 164 for one at tea. But a wonderful spell of old-ball bowling by Zaheer Khan, conjuring something out of nothing, hauled India back into the game and then a wicket each for Harbhajan and Mishra put them into the ascendancy.

It would not have been so bad for England but for a shockingly bad decision against Paul Collingwood by umpire Billy Bowden, a man flown in at short notice following Asad Rauf's visa problems. It was a case, perhaps, of the luck levelling itself out.