A record-breaking fourth wicket partnership of 310 by Paul Collingwood and Kevin Pietersen has put England in control of the second Test in Adelaide. The tourists declared their first innings at 551/6 and in replay Australia are in early trouble early at 28/1.

The Collingwood/Pietersen partnership was an all-time record for England for the fourth wicket against Australia, beating the previous mark of 288 set by Nasser Hussain and Graeme Thorpe at Edgbaston in 1997.

Collingwood, stuck on 98 overnight didn’t have to wait long to notch up his ton bringing up three figures with the second ball of the day and was brilliant throughout his chanceless innings of 206, achieving the highest score by an Englishman at the Adelaide Oval. It was also the first English double century on Australian soil in a Test for over 70 years. Collingwood finally came unstuck on the last ball before tea, slashing at a wide Stuart Clark delivery which he edged through to Adam Gilchrist.

The English duo exhibited tremendous character and application continuing from the strong form they showed in Brisbane. The pair looked to attack the bowling early with Glenn McGrath smashed for three boundaries in his first over of the day from the blade of Pietersen.

Finding no response on the lifeless pitch for the quick bowlers, Australia decided to go ultra defensive in the search for wickets. Against Pietersen they had run out of ideas and were hoping for a rash shot in frustration as the runs dried up. Shane Warne, in particular, tried to wear his Hampshire team-mate down by bowling around the wicket and employing a line well wide of leg-stump.

Pietersen showed his increasing maturity at the crease by not being tempted by Warne, rather choosing to douse the flames by using his pads to try and break down the will of the great Victorian leg spinner. Indeed, both English batsmen showed great resolve in sticking to the task at hand despite the Australians' attempts to choke the supply of runs. The tactic did make some in the capacity crowd restless, but it was cricket for the purists, bowler and batsman fighting a battle of the mind not just of leather and willow.