Ganguly wary of improved England

India may have drawn first blood against England in their first NatWest encounter at Lord's on Saturday, but captain Sourav Ganguly is in no mood for complacency as he prepares his team for tomorrow's day-night match at Chester-le-Street.

The India captain is well aware that India lost a 3-1 lead over England at the start of the year, drawing the last one-day series between the two countries.

"They played pretty well then," Ganguly said. "We were in a position where we could have won in Delhi and Bombay - but all credit to them for coming back."

India are level on points with the hosts in the current triangular tournament, although they have a game in hand over both England and Sri Lanka.

"I think there is a bit more quality in this [England] side than what we saw in the World Cup," Ganguly added. "Andrew Flintoff, for example, is turning out to be a good cricketer - something I am happy to see, having played for the same county [Lancashire] as him.

"Marcus Trescothick is also a great find for England. They are becoming a good one-day unit, and Nasser is doing well as captain."

India have begun the series impressively, with back-to-back wins over England at Lord's and then Sri Lanka at The Oval last weekend.

"I was not surprised to see the way we played. But this is an early part of the tour; it is just the beginning, and there is a lot of cricket to be played," Ganguly cautioned.

"It is most important we keep up our standards. The way the tournament is going we have a good chance of reaching Lord's, and if we do I hope we are in the right shape to do well."

India's squad is fully fit for tomorrow's match, the only question being whether to recall Harbhajan Singh, who made way for an extra pace bowler at The Oval.