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After the first Test humiliation, when India beat the West Indies by an innings for the first time, the visitors could not have been cheered too much by the sight of the track at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. Relaid, just as the Wankhede Stadium track had been, the pitch appears to be similar to its predecessor, which will mean that spin rather than pace will dominate the second Test. West Indian captain Carl Hooper insists that, just as his team bounced back from one-down in the Caribbean earlier this year, they can do the same at Chennai. But there is a vital difference; bouncing back in home conditions on fast pitches is one thing, but doing so against India in India, on spin-friendly tracks, is another altogether. The main problem, for the visitors, seems to be the batting. Apart from the gritty Shivnarine Chanderpaul, no other batsman can seem to come to terms with the low bounce and sharp turn. Brian Lara would have been very useful in that context, but sans Lara, the other batsmen - Ramnaresh Sarwan, Chris Gayle, Wavell Hinds and, most importantly, Hooper himself - must buckle down to the task. India, on the other hand, seem to be rollicking along merrily. Their batting is formidable, with Sanjay Bangar and Virender Sehwag even filling up the lacunae at the top of the order. The middle-order of Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, Sourav Ganguly and VVS Laxman will be a real challenge for the West Indian bowlers. It doesn't help that Tendulkar has hit four centuries in five Tests at Chepauk, while Dravid will be gunning for Everton Weekes' record of five hundreds in five consecutive Tests. The Indian bowling too seems to be a set of tough cookies at home. Ironically enough, the weak link in the attack may be Javagal Srinath, who was recalled only to boost the bowling department. Harbhajan Singh and Anil Kumble are more than a handful on sub-continental tracks, and Zaheer Khan has matured with astonishing rapidity in the past few months. If Srinath too can come good at Chennai, West Indian hopes of a fightback and a series turnaround will only fade faster away. © CricInfo |
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