Smith shines but it's not enough for England

ENGLAND crashed to a 336-run defeat in the second Rothesay Test against India as they were unable to dig deep enough to steal a draw at Edgbaston.

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For the first time in three years of the 'Bazball' era England accepted that a stalemate was the best they could hope for, attempting to frustrate the tourists on the final day rather than hunt an astronomical target of 608.

But a team who have made their name as thrill-seeking fourth-innings chasers were not built to produce a daylong rearguard and were bowled out for 271 with 27 overs still in front of them.

Jamie Smith was their best performer in front of a heavily pro-India crowd, following up a career-best 184 not out in the first innings with 88 in the second, but even he was unable to knuckle down for the long haul.