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 Hoping to end their 23-year drought against the West Indies at home, India have decided not to disturb their playing eleven in the second cricket Test starting here tomorrow and will field the same side that won the first match in Mumbai by a record margin. Ruling out any changes within four days in the squad that won the first Test, captain Saurav Ganguly said his team was playing positive cricket and there was no need to change it.
This is the first time in many years that an Indian captain has announced the playing eleven a day before the match and it shows the confidence Ganguly is exuding now.
A win here will give India their first home series win against the Caribbeans since 1976 when the Alvin Kalicharan-led team had been vanquished.
West Indies captain Carl Hooper, on the other hand, has announced that there would be changes in his side but did not specify them. “Selection is at the discretion of the chairman of the selection committee Vivian Richards. I am happy he has been watching the matches," Hooper said. Hooper has also been harping on the fact that his side had registered a comeback victory against India during the home series earlier this year and there was no reason why it could not happen again.
“We are confident of beating the Indians. We have beaten them on earlier occasions," Hooper said in an apparent reference to his side's comeback 2-1 victory at home early this year. Ganguly, just two victories away from former captain Mohd Azharuddin’s record 14 Test wins, also did not lose sight of the Caribbean fighting capabilities, saying the visitors were in a “do-or-die” situation and would go all out into the match.
But the Indian skipper said he was not thinking much about earning the tag of India's most successful captain and wasn't trying to reach the milestone in this series itself. “It is too early to think about a 3-0 result. I am not going to retire. This is not by last series. We will take game by game at a time. We played well at Mumbai. We hope to play positive here also and maintain our winning streak." Maintaining that the winning streak may not prove easy for India, who have not lost a home series since 1987 barring a loss to South Africa in 2000, as they will also have to surmount the virgin track at the Chepauk, which Ganguly said would assist spinners.
“The wicket looks good -- hard and bouncy -- more than the Mumbai pitch. It may turn later," he said but added it would be a folly to predict the exact behaviour. “It takes more than six months to read the true nature.” It was the kind of pitch where both seamers and spinners would have to put up a collective performance, Ganguly said.
On Javagal Srinath's performance, Ganguly, who was instrumental in the Karnataka speedster reversing his retirement decision, reiterated the veteran speedster had lot more cricket in him. “We have to give him some more games.” Picking out Zaheer Khan for special praise, Ganguly said his spell in Mumbai proved to be the key for India’s win.
Hooper said he did not see much change between the Mumbai wicket and the turf here. “The wicket is dry and has no grass," he said while conceding that spinners would again play an important role in the outcome of the match. The form of Shivnarine Chanderpaul should come as a relief to Hooper as the batsman negotiated India's spin duo Anil Kumble and Harbhajan Singh with ease to stand tall among ruins in Mumbai Test with a solid 54 and an unbeaten 36.
But as much as their batting West Indies are worried about containing the formidable Indian batting line-up that has got a much needed shot in the arm with Virender Sehwag and Sanjay Bangar coming in as openers. If the combination clicks again the West Indies may find it difficult to rein in the flow of runs.
Ganguly said though his openers had shown great character, they were yet to face pressure situations. “They have opened together five to six times but are yet to play in real pressure situations. We will have to wait and see." On picking 17-year-old Parthiv Patel ahead of Ajay Ratra, he said the team was looking for a wicket-keeper who could contribute with the bat also but added no one could take his place in the team for granted.
“Patel did a fantastic job in the first Test. It is not easy to get into the national Test side at the age of 17," he said. Ganguly was not too worried about the side's fielding in the first Test though they dropped a couple of chances. “After all we dropped just two catches. Containing the batsmen from scoring is more important which we did."
Richards though was really concerned by the number of chances the West Indians spilled. “It is one area we have to pay a lot more attention. Sehwag, who went on to make 141, was dropped when in 70s and Sachin Tendulkar also got a reprieve”. Hooper replied in the negative when asked whether his comments that the players would have to fight to keep their places would not put them under pressure. “I don't think it will put them under pressure. It is important that the team clicks well.”
The weather is also likely to play an important role, with rains threatening to spoil the game any time. It rained last week here and given the hot and humid conditions, one should not be too surprised to see the rain gods intervene. |
