Singh on song as India batter England

Yuvraj Singh hit a century as India thrashed a poor England side by 158 runs in the first of seven one-day internationals in Rajkot.

The hosts made a good start to the contest on Friday with openers Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir hitting 85 and 51 respectively, before Yuvraj smashed an impressive 138 off 78 balls to help guide India to 387-5 - the highest ever one-day total registered against England.

Kevin Pietersen's side endured a nightmare start in their response to such a daunting target, as they slipped to a dismal 38-4 with Zaheer Khan taking 3-26.

Pietersen put in a captain's performance with a creditable 63, while Ravi Bopara's unbeaten 54 was another consolation in the side's batting collapse.

However, they could not prevent England from being dismissed for just 229 and condemned to a demoralising defeat.

The teams move on to Indore for the second ODI on Monday as England, who lost 5-1 in their last series in India, will look to bounce back from this defeat as they bid for a first success there since 1984-85.