Final Test, The Oval (day one): England 336-2 v India
Michael Vaughan hit his fourth century of the summer as England dominated the opening day of the fourth and deciding Test against India at The Oval.
The England opener continued in his rich vein of fine form to smash 27 boundaries, finishing the day just 18 runs short of a double ton.
India, who won the previous Test at Headingley to square the series, could only take two wickets all day and will already have to work hard to stay in the match.
Vaughan shared in a first wicket partnership of 98 with Marcus Trescothick, who returned to the England side after missing the first three Tests with a broken thumb.
Butcher admitted the toss was a crucial one for England to win, the Oval pitch notorious for taking to spin on the fourth and fifth days.
"If our score becomes 450 all out then we'll have made a mess of it," stressed Mark Butcher, who shared in a 174-run second-wicket partnership with Vaughan.
"Our job is only half done at the moment. There's still a hell of a lot of runs to score before we get into a position where we can't lose or before we can start dictating the game.
"The key is to bat all day and do to them what they did to us at Headingley. We need to push our score up to 500 or 600."
