Graeme Swann put forward a strong case to be considered as England's senior spinner after another assured performance.
The 29-year-old Nottinghamshire off-spinner was brought to India to serve as back-up to Monty Panesar's left-arm spin should the tourists have considered playing two spinners in the two-Test series.
Swann was given his Test debut in the defeat in Chennai. He out-bowled England's senior spinner by claiming two wickets in his maiden over and grabbed two further victims during India's second innings as they chased down their victory target while Panesar finished wicketless.
But the most significant shift in Swann's standing within England's dressing room came on the second day at the PCA stadium when the tourists badly needed wickets to prevent India racing away with a major first innings score.
At 302 for one at lunch with Gautam Gambhir and Rahul Dravid both unbeaten with centuries, Panesar was the obvious choice for captain Kevin Pietersen to turn to in a desperate search for a breakthrough to end the 314-run second wicket stand.
Instead, while Panesar was limited to just 10 wicketless overs throughout the day, Swann bowled 30 - including 26 in one spell - and claimed three vital wickets to help England dismiss India for a less daunting 453.
"Whenever I get the ball I want to bowl for as long as possible," said Swann. "I got 40-odd overs (in the innings) which means I've bowled fairly well because obviously if you're not bowling well you get taken off - I was delighted to get a good spell under your belt."
Pietersen's faith in Swann was well rewarded when he dismissed both centurions and removed Sachin Tendulkar in a 10-over spell which prompted India to lose their last nine wickets for 123 runs.
Opener Gambhir has progressed to a superb 179, passing 1,000 Test runs in 2008 in the process, when he attempted to advance down the pitch to Swann and was beaten by the flight and looped the ball to point to end India's record second wicket stand against England and their second highest ever against the same opponents.
Four overs later Dravid, whose determined 136 was his first century in 20 Test innings, attempted a similar shot and also mis-hit his attempted drive down the ground and picked out Panesar at mid-off.
The prized scalp, however, was Tendulkar who missed an attempted sweep six overs later and was given lbw by umpire Daryl Harper to cause Swann to jump around with excitement.
"It's still very early in my Test career and just the chance to play against this India side with so many good players is great," he admitted.
"But there's no getting away from the fact he's the number one wicket in their team, he's the one you prize more than any and I'm just glad I could get it today."
Swann's triple wicket haul halted India's momentum so successfully that no other batsman passed 50 and instead of accelerating past 500 - and effectively ruling England out of the contest - they crumbled with Panesar claiming two late wickets.
Even with those successes down the order, though, Panesar has not looked as effective as Swann in the last two Tests and may now find increased competition for the spinner's role during the tour to West Indies in January.
"Each series I go into the first thing I think about is getting a game and then I want to get into the next series," said Swann. "I want to have a decent Test career and to do that I've got to perform every time I bowl.
"There is a Caribbean tour coming up after Christmas and I'll be delighted if I'm on the plane in the first place. If I keep performing well then hopefully I will get a game, but Monty is still a class bowler and if I can have anything like the success he's had in his early career I'll be over the moon."
All-rounder Andrew Flintoff, who generated more pace than any other bowler during another gruelling day for England's attack, also claimed three wickets to complete the tourists' fightback.
Panesar's failure to prevent India's successful run-chase at Chennai, when Tendulkar's masterful century completed an emotional six wicket victory, may have a long-term impact on England's future plans.
"Myself and Monty were the ones expected to win that game in Chennai and we tried our nuts off to do that, but we were completely outplayed by a genius on the day," added Swann.
"There are areas we were didn't bowl well and there were times we did bowl well and didn't make it pay. Monty is a class act and by the end today Monty showed he's still bowling really well."
The 29-year-old Nottinghamshire off-spinner was brought to India to serve as back-up to Monty Panesar's left-arm spin should the tourists have considered playing two spinners in the two-Test series.
Swann was given his Test debut in the defeat in Chennai. He out-bowled England's senior spinner by claiming two wickets in his maiden over and grabbed two further victims during India's second innings as they chased down their victory target while Panesar finished wicketless.
But the most significant shift in Swann's standing within England's dressing room came on the second day at the PCA stadium when the tourists badly needed wickets to prevent India racing away with a major first innings score.
At 302 for one at lunch with Gautam Gambhir and Rahul Dravid both unbeaten with centuries, Panesar was the obvious choice for captain Kevin Pietersen to turn to in a desperate search for a breakthrough to end the 314-run second wicket stand.
Instead, while Panesar was limited to just 10 wicketless overs throughout the day, Swann bowled 30 - including 26 in one spell - and claimed three vital wickets to help England dismiss India for a less daunting 453.
"Whenever I get the ball I want to bowl for as long as possible," said Swann. "I got 40-odd overs (in the innings) which means I've bowled fairly well because obviously if you're not bowling well you get taken off - I was delighted to get a good spell under your belt."
Pietersen's faith in Swann was well rewarded when he dismissed both centurions and removed Sachin Tendulkar in a 10-over spell which prompted India to lose their last nine wickets for 123 runs.
Opener Gambhir has progressed to a superb 179, passing 1,000 Test runs in 2008 in the process, when he attempted to advance down the pitch to Swann and was beaten by the flight and looped the ball to point to end India's record second wicket stand against England and their second highest ever against the same opponents.
Four overs later Dravid, whose determined 136 was his first century in 20 Test innings, attempted a similar shot and also mis-hit his attempted drive down the ground and picked out Panesar at mid-off.
The prized scalp, however, was Tendulkar who missed an attempted sweep six overs later and was given lbw by umpire Daryl Harper to cause Swann to jump around with excitement.
"It's still very early in my Test career and just the chance to play against this India side with so many good players is great," he admitted.
"But there's no getting away from the fact he's the number one wicket in their team, he's the one you prize more than any and I'm just glad I could get it today."
Swann's triple wicket haul halted India's momentum so successfully that no other batsman passed 50 and instead of accelerating past 500 - and effectively ruling England out of the contest - they crumbled with Panesar claiming two late wickets.
Even with those successes down the order, though, Panesar has not looked as effective as Swann in the last two Tests and may now find increased competition for the spinner's role during the tour to West Indies in January.
"Each series I go into the first thing I think about is getting a game and then I want to get into the next series," said Swann. "I want to have a decent Test career and to do that I've got to perform every time I bowl.
"There is a Caribbean tour coming up after Christmas and I'll be delighted if I'm on the plane in the first place. If I keep performing well then hopefully I will get a game, but Monty is still a class bowler and if I can have anything like the success he's had in his early career I'll be over the moon."
All-rounder Andrew Flintoff, who generated more pace than any other bowler during another gruelling day for England's attack, also claimed three wickets to complete the tourists' fightback.
Panesar's failure to prevent India's successful run-chase at Chennai, when Tendulkar's masterful century completed an emotional six wicket victory, may have a long-term impact on England's future plans.
"Myself and Monty were the ones expected to win that game in Chennai and we tried our nuts off to do that, but we were completely outplayed by a genius on the day," added Swann.
"There are areas we were didn't bowl well and there were times we did bowl well and didn't make it pay. Monty is a class act and by the end today Monty showed he's still bowling really well."
