It was way back in November 1994 that India last won a Test at the Wankhede Stadium – and significantly it was against West Indies. That is also India's only victory against West Indies in five meetings at the Wankhede – three Tests have ended in draws with the other, the first-ever Test at the venue in 1974-75, ending in a 201-run win for Clive Lloyd's team. India's defeat came after they had won the Calcutta and Madras Tests to level the series 2-2.

Historically, Bombay has provided more cheer for West Indies than India. Besides their five encounters at the Wankhede, the two teams have played each other on four other occasions in the city - at the Brabourne Stadium - with West Indies drawing three Tests before winning in 1966-67 under Garry Sobers.

India's last three Tests in Mumbai have been unproductive – a draw against Sri Lanka followed by losses to South Africa and Australia.

The wicket for the first Test is new and untested, and thus unpredictable. In keeping with the Board of Control for Cricket in India's (BCCI) vision to think for the long term, the curators have tried for a "sporting track". If the BCCI's quantum leap bears the desired results, not only will India's home advantage be diluted but it will also sharpen the cutting edge of Mervyn Dillon & Co.

The return of Javagal Srinath - the architect of India's last victory here in 1994 - from self-imposed exile may seem welcome in the face of an Indian attack that lacks quality, but the man of that match has since lost much - pace, penetration and enthusiasm. In four Tests at the Wankhede , Srinath has taken 12 wickets at 30.41, with 4 for 48 being his best.

Worryingly for India, their other potential matchwinner with the ball, Anil Kumble, has also had relatively limited success at home against West Indies. His 13 wickets have come at over 31 runs apiece and, like Srinath, he is without a five-for haul - a sharp contrast to his average of 21.30 and 15 five-fors in his overall haul of 210 wickets at home. Kumble's strike rate at home against West Indies, too, reflects the struggle: 67.3 balls per wicket as against 54.3, his overall performance in India.

The Wankhede brings the best out of Sachin Tendulkar. He has scored just one century from five Tests in his home town, but he has come within 24 runs of three figures in at least one innings of each of the other four Tests he has played here.

Carl Hooper leads a West Indies team in which only Cameron Cuffy and Shivnarine Chanderpaul have Test experience on Indian pitches. In fact, most of the Indian players, including seasoned campaigners like Rahul Dravid and Sourav Ganguly, will be playing West Indies at home for the first time. Hooper is on his third Test tour of India – a country against whom he has scored five of his 13 Test hundreds, including a highest of 233 in the last series in his own backyard. He reserves his best for India, against whom he averages 53.60 as against an overall career average of 36.84. The Test at Mumbai will be his 100th.

H Natarajan is senior editor of Wisden Asia Cricket and Wisden.com in India.

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