Richard Dawson was thrown in at the deep end when, in his first match for England, he was presented with a seamers' wicket, against batsmen who feed on spinners for a mid-morning snack. But Dawson, England's latest offspinning hope, won nothing but praise from assistant coach Graham Dilley. "He was very, very good," said Dilley. He looks to me as if, all things being equal, there is a future. He seems to me as if he knows what he wants to do and how he wants to do it. How he is going to go about doing it is the key to being successful."

But while Dawson took 2 for 81 in 24 overs, the rest of England's bowling wasn't quite so assured. Matthew Hoggard, Craig White and James Ormond - the three seamers expected to play in the first Test at Mohali - took 1 for 172 between them as the MCA President's XI bashed their way to 373.

But Dilley bowed his blond head and said that he wasn't too concerned. "We are just trying to get better and better and more acclimatised to our cricket in these games," he said. "There's no point anybody peaking too early. You've got to be very careful you get your preparation right. You don't overbowl the guys that are going to be playing in the first Test."

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