Indian batsmen had no answers to Stuart Broad and James Anderson's line and length in the opening day of the fourth Test and they were bundled for 155 in just two sessions on Thursday.
At one time the visitors were reduced to eight for four, with Gautam Gambhir, Murali Vijay, Virat Kohli and Cheteshwar Pujara dismissed in a space of 13 balls. Anderson and Broad were lethal and swung the ball both ways to trouble India on the first day.
Skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Ajinkya Rahane tried to rebuild the innings, but after doing all the hard work, the latter fell just before lunch. Dhoni was the lone warrior for India and anchored the innings but received no help from the other end.
"I was disappointed to find out that we lost the toss and then we got lucky with overhead conditions," said Broad. "But it wasn't just about the conditions. We bowled well and hit the right lengths with the new ball and it was swinging nicely."
"We challenged the Indian batsmen with right lengths and took our catches to put ourselves in a really good position," he added.
India lost all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja after lunch interval but Dhoni and Ravichandran Ashwin counterattacked and stitched a 66-run partnership for the seventh wicket. Ashwin, in particular, attacked the English bowlers and played confident strokes.
Just when the things started to look positive for India, Broad came out firing and scalped Ashwin. The off-spinner did not shy away from short stuffs and the English pacer set him up as he miss-timed one that went straight to Sam Robson.
"The big thing was that the nicks were carrying and as a bowler that is a huge advantage," Broad added. "The ball was swinging nicely but when the sun came out, R Ashwin and MS Dhoni showed that it was a decent wicket to bat on."
Indian innings did not last long as Broad got rid of Dhoni, Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Pankaj Singh to end India's resistance. In reply to India's mere total, England was rocked early when Bhuvneshwar dismissed Robson, while Varun Aaron got rid of Alastair Cook and Gary Ballance.
"It wasn't a satisfactory performance by the batsmen," Aaron said. "But then, the conditions were also tough. The ball was doing a lot. However, at the end of the day, I am happy that we got three wickets."
"I stuck to my plans. I have been working with our bowling coach Joe Dawes. He told me a few things and I am working on them," he added. "Today, I stuck to my basics and tried to get my line and length right. I am glad that I reaped the rewards today. However, my job is not done."
Aaron pointed out that the wicket has settled down a bit and is not assisting the pacers in same way like it did in the first hour or so. He, however, insisted that bowling well in the first session will be a key if India have to script a comeback in the match.
"The wicket has changed since morning today," Aaron pointed out. "The bowlers were not getting the same assistance in the last two sessions as they were getting in the first. Tomorrow, the first session will be really important. We need to bowl really well if we want to make a comeback."
Line-ups: England: Alastair Cook (c), Sam Robson, Gary Ballance, Ian Bell, Joe Root, Moeen Ali, Jos Buttler (wk), Chris Woakes, Chris Jordan, Stuart Broad and James Anderson.
India: Murali Vijay, Gautam Gambhir, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli, Ajinkya Rahane, MS Dhoni (c and wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Varun Aaron and Pankaj Singh.
Where to Watch live
The first day of the fourth Test in Manchester is scheduled for an 11 am local time (3.30 pm IST, 6 am ET) start with live coverage on Star Sports 1, Star Sports 3 and Star Sports HD1 in India. The match can also be watched via free live streaming online HERE.
Watch the match live online in the UK HERE or HERE, with TV coverage on Sky Sports 2. Listen to the Test match via BBC Radio 5 Live HERE. The match will be telecast live on ESPN 3 in the US, while the action can also be live streamed HERE.
