Tony Becca, Contributing Editor
THE WEST Indies, still smiling from their 5-0 victory over Zimbabwe, begin their hunt for bigger scalps today at Sabina Park when they take on India in the first of what promises to be a close and exciting five-match Digicel one-day series.
With India winning four times in the past five times the two teams met -including a 2-0 victory in Sri Lanka on the most recent occasion, with India boasting three batsmen in the top 12 and the West Indies only one, with India having two bowlers in the top 12 and the West Indies none at all, and with India at number three and the West Indies five places down at number eight in the LG ICC rankings, the odds on victory are, however, in India's favour.
Winners of the World Cup in 1983 when they knocked off the West Indies in the final and prevented the champions of 1975 and 1979 from making it three in a row, India's batting, despite the absence of Sachin Tendulkar, is strong, so too their bowling and, on top of that, they are brilliant in the field.
AGGRESSIVE BATSMEN
Apart from wicketkeeper/batsman Mahendra Dhoni, captain Rahul Dravid and Yuvraj Singh, who are ranked at number two, number 10 and number 11 in the LG ICC ranking of batsmen, India also boast batsmen like the aggressive and dangerous Virender Sehwag, Mohammed Kaif and Venugopal Rao, plus the attractive youngsters Robin Uthappa and Suresh Raina.
In Ajit Agarkar and young Irfan Pathan - number two in the bowing and number three in the all-rounder rankings, they boast two good pace-bowling all-rounders, in Munaf Patel, Shanthakumaran Sreesanth and young Rudra Pratap Singh, they possess, along with Agarkar and Pathan, three good pacers, and in Harbhajan Singh - number 10 in the rankings, they have, on call, one of the finest off-spinners in the game.
As impressive as those statistics are, however, as good as those players are or appear to be, the West Indies are confident they can win the opener, go on and win the series and start the climb back to the top.
And they could just do that.
Although their bowling, but for Fidel Edwards, lacks the fire of days gone by, even though their bowling, but for Corey Collymore, lacks consistency, and although their fielding is up and down, they can get away to a winning start because of their batting - even though it too has a recent history of inconsistency.
DELICATE STROKEPLAYER
In Brian Lara, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Chris Gayle and Ramnaresh Sarwan, the West Indies boast the world's best batsman, a solid batsman who, on his day can be explosive, one of the world's hardest hitters of the ball and a delicate strokeplayer.
On top of that, and apart from the aggressive wicketkeeper/batsman Carlton Baugh Jnr., in Runako Morton, Marlon Samuels, Dwayne Bravo and Dwayne Smith, the West Indies squad also includes four other exciting, if less accomplished, batsmen.
With three from those four, plus Baugh, joining Lara, Chanderpaul, Gayle and Sarwan, the West Indies batting is potentially dangerous, and with pacer Sreesnath and offspinner Ramesh Powar nursing injuries and unlikely to play, it could be a rough day for the Indian attack that should include pacers Pathan, Agarkar, Rudra Pratap Singh and possibly Patel as well as offspinner Harbhajan Singh - and especially so if two or three of their big guns get going.
Another reason why the West Indies are bubbling with confidence is not only because they boast a record of 46 for and 30 against in 78 matches against India. Although their two previous matches at Sabina Park, scheduled for March 25 and March 26, 2002, were abandoned without a ball being bowled, even though this will be or should be the first match in Jamaica between the two teams, it is also because in 15 matches at home the record is an impressive 11 for and only four against.
Can the West Indies, after putting lowly Zimbabwe in their place, knock off the highly ranked and strongly favoured India today and take a one-nil lead in the contest?
Although they are the underdogs, the West Indies can and they could, and although Edwards, Collymore and Jerome Taylor, the three pacers who are expected to lead their attack, could play a part in it, it could all depend on their batsmen - and especially so one or two of Lara, Chanderpaul, Gayle and Sarwan.
