The Indians' favourite haunt in the Caribbean
Shady Moosavi - 18 April 2002
Not too long ago, the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) president
Rev. Wes Hall mentioned that, if West Indies had to survive as a
cricketing nation, they had to bring in real changes; it was
either change or perish. They had to overcome what he called the
"dinosaurial syndrome."
It seems that the authorities are finally paying heed to his
words; at least the curator working at the Queen's Park Oval,
Port of Spain, is. This ground, located in the heart of Trinidad,
has been a favourite haunt for spinners, and when you say
"spinner," the next word that comes to mind is "India," a country
that has produced more top-class spin bowlers than any other. It
is also a known fact that when the Indians come to the West
Indies, they cannot wait to visit Port of Spain.
However, this year's touring party may not be too happy with the
preparations. Word is that the pitch at the Queen's Park Oval has
been freshly laid recently. Carl Hooper expects it to be grassy,
and the West Indian skipper has not made any effort to hide his
satisfaction at the fact. He has said that his pace spearheads
may get the much-needed support from the track that they were
deprived of by the Georgetown pitch. However, I would have
preferred him to give the more honest reason - that India,
thankfully, will not have the advantage they are used to on this
ground.
Arguably, India would definitely have experienced an upper hand
had they faced a more typical Trinidad track. In seven series in
the islands, 11 Tests have been played on this ground. The West
Indies have won three, six have been drawn, and India have
registered their only two victories in the Caribbean at the
Queen's Park Oval - in the second Test of the 1971 series and in
the third Test in 1975. In fact, their first victory on this
ground was even enough to win them their first series in the West
Indies, with new boy Sunil Gavaskar scoring 774 runs and ensuring
that the rest of the Tests were drawn, if not won. The fifth Test
of that same series was also at Port of Spain, and the West
Indies, batting last, managed to escape with a draw at 165 for
eight while chasing 262 for victory.
So why do India put up a good show here most of the time? The
answer lies in the slowness of the track and its tendency to turn
sharply as early as the third day. Sound similar to Indian
wickets? Such conditions have been exploited by Subhash Gupte and
the spin quartet of the 70s, and also by Anil Kumble to a certain
extent. During their last visit in 1996, Port of Spain was the
one venue where India had the West Indies' backs against the wall
in an otherwise evenly balanced series, thanks largely to
Kumble's five-wicket haul in the first innings and Navjot Singh
Sidhu's maiden double ton during India's turn at bat. However,
helped by rain and improved batting by the hosts in their second
innings, the match ended in a dull draw.
The ardent West Indian supporter would though argue that a
2-6-3 win-draw-loss record wouldn't necessarily make India
favorites here, especially since the hosts have won more Tests.
However, two of those three West Indian victories were during the
1961 whitewash series, where India were playing without all their
veteran stalwarts, including Gupte.
From 1971 - when India had a real cricket boom with the arrival
of Gavaskar and the by-now-renowned spin attack - to 1996, there
have been seven Tests here, of which India have won 2 and West
Indies just one, in 1988. That West Indian victory came during
the period after Gavaskar's retirement and before the entry of
another little master, Sachin Tendulkar. That weak spin attack
was led by Ravi Shastri and newcomer Narendra Hirwani. On the
other hand, the West Indians could boast players such as Desmond
Haynes, Gordon Greenidge and Viv Richards.
India, thus, have always done well here, whether batting or
bowling. This ground, most notably, was also witness to India
scoring 406 for victory in the final innings of the third Test of
the 1975 series, that still being the highest successfully
achieved target in Tests.
With Harbhajan Singh expected to be back to partner Kumble here,
the hosts cannot afford to go down 0-1 on a spinning track. That
is one reason why I don't blame the re-laying of the pitch
"coinciding" with India's visit. After all, wasn't that just what
the mighty Aussies did at Sydney during the 2000 series against
the same opponents? But India could always go back to being
tigers at home; at least nobody's changing pitches there anytime
soon.
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