Harbhajan took juts his second five-wicket haul in ODIs

Harbhajan Singh triggered an England collapse to snatch the opening one-day match for India by 39 runs in Delhi.

Chasing 204 to win, the tourists crashed from 117-3 to 164 all out, Harbhajan taking a career-best 5-31 after top-scoring with just 37.

Kevin Pietersen (46) and Andrew Flintoff (41) put on 60 in eight overs as England recovered from 4-2 but their cavalier shots sparked the tumble.

Earlier, Kabir Ali took 4-45 and made a run out as India were all out cheaply.

But England's confidence soon evaporated as Irfan Pathan found some early swing to dismiss Andrew Strauss and Owais Shah in the first over of the reply.

We should have knocked off 203 - our batters lacked a bit not to get the runs Andrew Flintoff More reaction

Strauss edged a swinging ball behind and Shah, in his first ODI for three years, only had time to drive a boundary before he was trapped lbw.

Pietersen took 14 balls to get his feet moving before striking the first of nine boundaries, all but two of which came on the leg side.

Opener Matt Prior allowed Pietersen centre stage in a stand of 53 but became the first of five England batsmen to fall to the sweep, four of which came against Harbhajan.

Photos from Delhi

England were preparing to celebrate as Flintoff hit Sri Sreesanth for two sixes and a four in a single over, the first hitting the second tier of the stand at long off.

India were allowed back into the game, though, as Flintoff and Pietersen fell with the score on 117.

Pietersen was caught in the deep, slog-sweeping a full toss from occasional spinner Yuvraj Singh in search of his 50, after the hosts brought their fielders in for their second powerplay.

Flintoff was lbw trying to sweep Harbhajan in the next over as what should have been a celebration in his first match as one-day captain turned into a nightmare.

Harbhajan has taken five wickets in an ODI only once before, also against England in 2002.

There was a surfeit of arrogance about England's batting. Freddie needs to read the riot act to them! From PB Have your say on TMS

He has struggled to recover form after finger surgery a year ago, taking just eight wickets in the recent Test series.

A last-wicket stand of 18 between Liam Plunkett and James Anderson only delayed the inevitable for seven overs.

The two young bowlers had prospered earlier, with two wickets each, as India struggled for much of their innings on a pitch offering variable bounce and seam movement.

There was also a sterling performance from spinner Ian Blackwell, who bowled straight through for figures of 1-24, his cheapest ever 10-over return.

Only when Gautam Gambhir and captain Rahul Dravid were together did India look like their usual dominating selves, the first 50 runs coming at almost a run a ball.

Virender Sehwag had already perished for seven, falling again for England's short-ball plan and top-edging a pull off Anderson.

Kabir took two wickets and ran Kaif out in the space of five overs

Dravid, dropped on nought, hit four boundaries off the next three overs, but was stopped on 34 when Plunkett jagged a delivery through the gate.

Ali, only playing because Sajid Mahmood suffered a finger injury, missed a sharp return chance with Gambhir on 13 but had him caught pushing away from his body for 25.

Yuvraj Singh was cavalier as he flashed a loose drive to his sixth ball and got an inside edge onto his stumps.

And even though he was then rested from the attack, Ali was again in action as he threw from long on, punishing Mohammad Kaif's slow response to Dravid's call for a single.

Suresh Raina and Irfan Pathan looked assured together in a stand of 58, surprisingly bettering by 27 the sixth-wicket record for this ground, but failed to capitalise.

Blackwell was stiflingly accurate and broke the burgeoning partnership through frustration as Raina lost his head and miscued an attempted drive to mid-on.

Harbhajan dominated an eighth-wicket partnership with Mahendra Dhoni, who cut to point looking to overcome a subdued start.

Ali completed his haul with the wickets of Harbhajan and last man Sreesanth with successive deliveries in the following over, the 47th.