England cricketers stay on top of Warwickshire

England continued their build-up to next week's first Ashes Test by strengthening their grip on this three-day warm-up match against Warwickshire at Edgbaston.

They bowled the hosts for just 102 on the second day here Thursday.

Pace bowler James Anderson took five wickets for 34 runs ahead of the first Test against Australia in Cardiff while Andrew Flintoff and left-arm spinner Monty Panesar also enjoyed success with the ball.

By tea England were 70 without loss in their second innings, an overall lead of 258.

Anderson's return followed his man-of-the-match performance in the second Test against the West Indies at Chester-le-Street, when he claimed a nine-wicket haul.

Flintoff, criticised for missing the team bus during last weekend's squad trip to visit World War I graves in Belgium, nearly took the first wicket of the day only for Anderson to drop Jonathan Trott in the gully.

Anderson though did have Trott caught behind before Flintoff had Tony Frost lbw after the batsman walked across his stumps.

Flintoff, the star of England's 2005 Ashes series triumph but now coming back from a knee injury, then had left-hander Jim Troughton caught behind off a lifting delivery bowled from around the wicket - a tactic he is sure to use against the several southpaws in Australia's top-order.

The all-rounder's first spell saw him return figures of two wickets for 14 runs in six overs.

But from then on it was Anderson who took centre stage with three wickets in six overs that saw him to his five-wicket haul

Ex-England wicket-keeper Tim Ambrose was bowled off-stump before Ateeq Javid and Rikki Clarke were caught at gully and second slip respectively.

And there was another boost for England when Panesar bowled Keith Barker with a delivery that turned.

Panesar took two more wickets shortly after lunch to wrap up the innings and that gave England the chance to promote Ravi Bopara to open alongside captain Andrew Strauss following regular opener Alastair Cook's first-innings century.

Strauss was dropped by Trott at first slip off seamer Naqaash Tahir on 23, but was 37 not out at tea.