thigh pad

Although the ball seemed to have hit something on the way, replays showed it was nothing but the thigh pad. The bat was miles away.

The admirable Williamson erred for once when he poked a low catch to gully off the back foot, and then McCullum was bowled first ball off thigh pad and bat by a very good one that nipped back up the slope.

He made just five in the first innings before being bowled in unusual fashion around his legs and via the thigh pad and, perhaps surprisingly, was not invited to bat again on the final evening as India opted against declaring.

Shami then made it 25 innings for Cook since the last of his England record 25 Test hundreds when he bowled him round his legs for five after the ball deflected off the left-handed opener's thigh pad. Cook's exit left England nine for one, with both Kumar and Shami, who took one for 15 in five overs, finding a degree of swing with the new ball that largely eluded the home pacemen.

First, Christian was drilled down the ground for four and then a fearless attempt to paddle a ball from outside off resulted in a streaky four off the thigh pad. Steyn has combusted on a couple of occasions at the death this season, and has been unhittable on others.

The crowd rose to its feet when Ponting worked Zaheer Khan behind square for a couple but the faithful were quickly subdued when the signal for leg byes was realised, the ball clearly deflecting off the batsman's thigh pad.

Pietersen also had a moment of fortune, almost cannoning a Mahmudulla delivery off his thigh pad and on to leg stump.

England removed the night-watchman quickly when Paul Harris was bowled via his thigh pad by Anderson.

Shah and Eoin Morgan both produced some eye-catching strokes, but both fell for 23 before Dimitri Mascarenhas (11) was unluckily bowled off his thigh pad by Hopes.

He went lbw to Alan Richardson for 106, although the ball looked as if it hit him high on the thigh pad.

Shivnarine Chanderpaul and Dwayne Bravo had added 132 for the fifth wicket when Bravo was given out caught behind off a Lee delivery for 45, although television replays showed the ball had clipped Bravo's thigh pad rather than his bat.

Michael Vaughan looks on in dismay as the ball deflects off his thigh pad to break his stumps

However, television replays seemed to show that the ball had just ballooned off his thigh pad to Adams at short leg.