Insecurity builds up for Indians after early blows

Ground staff spent the whole day drying up the two ominous wet patches just short of the good length spot at both ends, and the West Indians, who turned up at the venue in the morning, were politely diverted to the nearby Indoor Stadium where all they could get was some exercise in the gym — and some football practice on the badminton court. The Indians didn’t even bother to turn up in the morning, preferring to enjoy the rain from the cosy confines of their hotel rooms. But with the sun later coming out brightly and a strong wind blowing, the outfield was ready for the Indians to do light exercises and lighter knocking.

West Indies coach Roger Harper was a ‘‘bit disappointed’’ that they could not get any net practice, but, he said, ‘‘nobody can help weather conditions’’.

Captain Carl Hooper was ‘‘undergoing treatment for a small problem in his knee’’, but was confident that the skipper would be able to play the match. Harper also indicated that medium pacers Pedro Collins and Cameron Cuffy, who missed the Nagpur match, were fit.

The West Indian coach said he was delighted by the dramatic turnaround in their fortunes, winning two matches in a row after losing the Test series, ‘‘But we have to keep our feet on the ground because there are still five matches to be played.’’

As Rahul Dravid seemes to be fully fit, wicket-keeper Parthiv Patel is again unlikely to get his one-day debut, but India are likely to play an extra all-rounder. Skipper Ganguly suggested it would be at the cost of one of the spinners, Harbhajan or Kumble. Ajit Agarkar’s promotion to No. 3 as pinch hitter, though he made 95 at that spot in Jamshedpur, ‘‘was only an experiment because we were playing two spinners,’’ Ganguly said, suggesting they would not persist with the experiment here. Light-to-moderate showers are predicted in this region for Tuesday. But if they don’t, this somnolent Saurashtra town is in for some exciting cricket, what with West Indies keen to press on with their 2-0 advantage and India desperate to bridge the gap before it gets too wide.