'KP' on the double

LONDON (AP):India reached 17-0 at stumps on day two of the second Test at Lord's yesterday, after England declared on 474-8.

Kevin Pietersen helped post the daunting total with an unbeaten 202, while Matt Prior chipped in with 71 from 93 balls and Jonathan Trott contributed 70 from 140 balls.

"It was fantastic," Pietersen said. "The conditions I batted in yesterday, the wicket, having to face MS Dhoni for half an hour as well, it's right up there with the best hundreds I've scored."

Praveen Kumar claimed career-best figures of 5-106 to almost single-handedly restrict England's total.

"It was a dream to play here," Kumar said. "It felt nice, the weather was nice, it was a good feeling. After taking the fourth wicket I was very confident of getting the fifth."

Kumar responded brilliantly to fill the gap left by the absence of the injured Zaheer Khan, though for much of the afternoon session his efforts were partially eclipsed by a bizarre bowling cameo from his wicketkeeper and captain Dhoni.

With England on 217-3 at lunch and India reduced to three orthodox bowlers due to Khan's hamstring injury, Dhoni - who has bowled just three overs in 57 Tests - took the drastic step of bringing himself on to bowl, leaving Rahul Dravid to keep wicket.

In his second over Dhoni had Pietersen caught behind, but the decision was overturned after the batsman called for a review.

"I had to review that, I can't get out to Dhoni," Pietersen joked. "That was difficult, really, really difficult to get through. He got the ball to swing both ways and nip, he's just a very talented man."

England began the day on 127-2 and steadily accumulated runs on a slow pitch.

Khan's future uncertain

Khan's future on the tour remains uncertain after India confirmed he had picked up a hamstring strain on Thursday.

Khan, the only bowler to take wickets on day one, is a doubt for the rest of the Test.

Ishant Sharma was again ineffectual and Harbhajan Singh struggled to extract any turn, though England's apparently serene progress was temporarily halted when Kumar was introduced.

Kumar's second ball rapped Trott on the front pad and the batsman was correctly given out lbw by Billy Bowden. The bowler was then contentiously denied Pietersen's wicket in the 67th over.

Pietersen glanced Kumar's delivery to Rahul Dravid at leg slip but ignored India's vehement appeals, prompting Bowden to ask for an inconclusive review that suggested the ball had hit the ground, giving the batsman the benefit of the doubt.

Four balls later, Pietersen completed his 50, from 134 deliveries, and though he was lucky to avoid playing on to his stumps to Sharma, he survived to the interval, alongside an increasingly confident Ian Bell.

In the afternoon session, Pietersen continued to push his luck, surviving Dhoni's appeal, before bringing up his century, from 216 balls, with a superb drive through mid-on for four.

fluent Bell

Bell, by contrast, looked fluent throughout until the 93rd over, when he nicked a ball from Kumar to first slip and was caught by Dhoni, now back behind the stumps.

Within three balls Kumar struck again, getting Eoin Morgan caught behind for a duck.

Pietersen survived a third review early in the evening session, this time for a catch off Harbhajan as he tried to reverse sweep, to put on a century stand with Prior.

Kumar was momentarily distracted by an altercation with a heckler in the Edrich stand, but he dismissed the exchange as "chit-chat" and channelled his anger to remove Prior, caught behind, and Stuart Broad for nought in successive balls.

Graeme Swann survived the hat-trick ball and an appeal for lbw from Harbhajan that would have been given out had India been able to ask for a review.

India's openers Abhinav Mukund (8 not out) and Gautam Gambhir (9 not out) survived to the close, with Asad Rauf making an excellent decision to turn down a fierce appeal for lbw from Chris Tremlett against Mukund in the final over.