The reinstatement of Ian Bell after his controversial dismissal was an honourable decision. But was it the right one?

Ian Bell was given "run out" in the most bizarre circumstances – and then reinstated in the most bizarre circumstances – here today. Bell had played one of his finest innings for England, scoring 137, when he was given out to the last delivery before the tea interval. Eoin Morgan had played the ball down to long leg and Praveen Kumar made a diving attempt to stop the ball. The ball bounced off his leg as the fielder fell over the boundary.

Kumar was clearly under the impression that the ball had gone for four, as he returned it forlornly to the square. It was taken by MS Dhoni who then gave it to the short-leg fielder, Abhinav Mukund, who broke the wicket. By this time Bell and Morgan, who appeared to think the umpire had called "over" were on their way back to the pavilion for their cup of tea.

But to England's bafflement Bell – who should have played to the whistle and was guilty of being a bit dozy – was given out after replays had shown that the ball had not gone for four. The umpires were booed as they took the field but then the boos turned to cheers when Bell resumed his innings, Dhoni withdrawing the appeal over tea. Sportsmanship had prevailed after all. But had the right decision been made? Former captain Nasser Hussain said he would have appealed, just like Dhoni: "Putting myself in that position I would have done exactly the same." And another former captain, Michael Vaughan, added: "I would have done the same."

Bell's reprieve adds to the sense that if England don't beat India in this second Test they will not only be kicking themselves but hurling themselves from the balcony of the wonderful old pavilion at Trent Bridge. Without sounding too disrespectful to some all-time great players India, the No1 side in the world, looked a very ordinary outfit at times today and are there for the taking.

When conditions suited their bowlers in the first innings of the match they bowled with great skill and discipline. But in the first two sessions today, with the last vestiges of greenness gone from the pitch and the sun out, they looked toothless in attack and ragged in the field.

While Bell and Kevin Pietersen were adding 162 for the third wicket, milking the bowling and punishing some wayward deliveries, Dhoni had no answer. They are missing, of course, the redoubtable Zaheer Khan, a bowler who even when he wasn't taking wickets had the ability to control one end. In his absence, Dhoni looked to Harbhajan Singh to seal up one end. But when he was taken out of the attack his seven overs had cost 36 runs.

But the most disappointing aspect of today's cricket, from an India perspective, was the lack of urgency and intensity in their play. They had the upper hand at the start of play on the third day but you would never have thought so.

It is all proving a bit too much for Ravi Shastri, India's former glamour boy and captain – he led the side in one Test. He was involved in a spat with Hussain on Indian TV. Nasser, quite reasonably, described India's decision not to use the DRS system for lbw decisions as an absolute disgrace. The DRS system, despite some teething problems, has been a power for good, eliminating countless poor decisions, and has been embraced in its entirety by all the other Test-playing countries.

Nasser's comments were made after Harbhajan was given out lbw even though he had got a thick inside edge on to his pads. The response from Ravi came in the form of an astonishingly arrogant attack, not only on Nasser but English cricket in general. He said: "What right does he have to say disgrace? It's for both teams, there are certain things that can be corrected, fair enough."

He added: "England is trying to hit at everything that the BCCI does, every damn thing that they do, They [England] are jealous about the way the IPL is going, they are jealous about where India is in world cricket, they are jealous about the fact that India are world champions, they are jealous because of the too much money being made by the BCCI. Bottom line is that they have never been No1 in the world in Test cricket."

But Nasser would not let it rest there. When play got under way today he said: "Ravi, I just want to pick you up on something you said on a show yesterday, questioning my right to call non-use of DRS a disgrace. Well, I've earned that right after 96 Test matches to voice my opinion on the game of cricket. I'm sure that's what ESPN has asked me to do."

Ravi's rather limp response to that was: "India has got every right to decide whether to take it or not. The reason why India decided not to take it is that they don't think it's 100% fool proof."

Sportsmanship aside, whatever happens in this match India's days in the sun are numbered. And they know it. Even Ravi knows it.