Another try-series for Indians

Uncertainty about the weather and team composition loomed large as India and New Zealand prepared for their first match in the TVS Cup trian...

Uncertainty about the weather and team composition loomed large as India and New Zealand prepared for their first match in the TVS Cup triangular one-day series at the MA Chidambaram Stadium on Wednesday. Captains Rahul Dravid and Stephen Fleming preferred to play their cards close their chest on the eve of the day-night match and would not announce their playing eleven until tomorrow.

Dravid would only say that he won’t be keeping wickets and that opens the door for teenager Parthiv Patel to make his first appearance in one-dayers in India. ‘‘I am not going to give away too much on our options or team strategy before the match,’’ he said. Ironically, Fleming has more options than his counterpart with the arrival of all-rounders Chris Harris and Chris Cairns for the ODI series.

TEAMS

India (from): Rahul Dravid (capt), Virender Sehwag, S Tendulkar, V V S Laxman, Hemang Badani, Yuvraj Singh, Mohd Kaif, Zaheer Khan, Ajit Agarkar, Anil Kumble, Harbhajan Singh, Parthiv Patel, L Balaji and Murali Karthik.

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New Zealand (from): Stephen Fleming (capt), Lou Vincent, Chris Nevin, Craig McMillan, Chris Cairns, Chris Harris, Scott Styris, Brendon McCullum, Jacob Oram, Daryl Tuffey, Paul Hitchcock, Kyle Mills, Daniel Vettori, Ian Butler.

Umpires: AV Jayaprakash and David Shepherd.

Weather permitting, the flat track at the Chidambaram Stadium will produce runs aplenty. The Tamil Nadu Cricket Association officials have been keeping their fingers crossed as incessant rain in the last 48 hours threatened to spoil the match, though it stayed away on Wednesday, allowing the teams to practice.

Sachin Tendulkar and Virender Sehwag should in all probability open the innings, though Rahul Dravid would like to keep his ‘options open’ and not reveal whether that has been decided. Tendulkar and Saurav Ganguly are at the top of the one-day opening combinations, having made 5,584 runs from 115 innings. But with Ganguly out for the first two games, Dravid’s options are limited.

The inclusion of Parthiv Patel could mean an end to local boy Hemang Badani’s chances of coming back into the one-day team as the top six — Sehwag, Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, VVS Laxman, Yuvraj Singh and Mohd Kaif — select themselves. Zaheer Khan, Ajit Agarkar, Anil Kumble and Harbhajan Singh also look the natural choices unless Dravid wants to experiment with L Balaji, who came in for Salvi as a last-minute replacement or Murali Karthik in the first match itself.

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The absence of Ganguly — and Dravid’s decision not to keepwickets — will be felt in more than one way as it limits India’s fifth-bowler options. Sehwag, Tendulkar and Yuvraj will have to share the burden if India go into the match with just four bowlers.

For Stephen Fleming, the series begins on a high note. To draw a Test series in India is as good as winning it. It has has brought about positive signals from the captain himself and he would like to believe that his men, though started off as underdogers, are the favourites now. The team may miss Nathan Astle, who has gone back after an injury but Chris Cairns and Chris Harris would more than compensate for Astle’s absence. The Kiwis have a good all-round side with useful players like Daniel Vettori and Jacob Oram at the bottom.

For once, India will feel the pressure at home in a one-day series as the third side are the world champions Australia.

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