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If the most dangerous animal is one that has been wounded, then the most determined cricketer is one whose ego has been punctured. Of all the sportsmen to suffer ignominy in the last 12 months, few have been more humbled than South Africa’s cricket team. Although they did not play cricket for seven months of the year, the break gave them ample time to think about the disappointment which preceded it.Without mentioning what that was just yet, remember that South Africa ended their winter break with a cracker-jack series against Australia. Now, they are in the process of sinking their teeth into a tender Sri Lankan side, whose inability to perform away from home and without their stalwart spinner, Muttiah Muralitharan, has never been more glaring. For Graeme Smith, it is an opportunity to make amends, even though the wrong has long been forgotten.”After a very disappointing time at the World Cup, a lot of criticism around and the lack of confidence, just to be able to build and strengthen up the squad is crucial,” Smith said. “There’s stability around the team. You could feel a much more settled nature in the squad in the first Test against Sri Lanka and some confidence shown in players. It’s good to see the players have taken that and performed.”March 25, Allan Donald in the black and white of New Zealand and Kyle Mills shoulder-charging Faf du Plessis seem like years ago. To the average South African cricket fan, that quarter-final loss probably doesn’t matter that much anymore and definitely has no place in the current summer of cricket. But, Smith is still a little haunted by the memory of that day and, according to him, some of the other players also are. “A lot of the players have been hurt over the last period of time and are really motivated to put things right,” he said.Redemption is too strong a word to use for what South Africa hope to do – if they were looking for that, they achieved it when they bowled Australia out for 47 in Cape Town last month – it’s far less complicated than that. Consistency is perhaps closer to the truth or just simply the ability to win a home series for the first time in three seasons. Whatever it is, Durban would be a fitting venue to do it.The last time South Africa won a Test at Kingsmead was in 2008, against West Indies. Since then, it’s been as much of a nemesis to them as left-armers are to Smith and they have lost to Australia, England and India. “It’s been extremely disappointing the way we have played at Kingsmead,” Smith said. “I want to turn that around. I want to perform well here and I think everybody in the team feels the same way.”Usually, the Kingsmead Test is the Boxing Day one and Smith was candid in saying at this festive time of year, the squad has to be careful not to let their guard down. “At Christmas time, you have to keep your focus up,” he said. “The margins have been small here in the Test matches we’ve played. We’ve being as clinical as we could have been. Mentally, we need to be strong.”The reality is that few expect South Africa will need a Herculean effort to overcome this Sri Lankan side, that the inspiration the squad will draw from their World Cup exit and their poor record in Durban might be better directed to a different, more competitive opposition. Since, it can’t, this will have to do. Smith and Co. can only fight the opponent put in front of them and they are determined to leave nothing to chance. “It’s our goal to keep them [Sri Lanka] on the back foot as long as possible and not allow them to find that rhythm and freedom with which they like to play,” Smith said.

A commanding defeat of New Zealand inside four days will not stop Australia from considering a debut for the allrounder Daniel Christian as insurance against the risk of overextending the hosts’ youthful bowling attack in the second of back-to-back Test matches.Christian, 28, was placed on standby for the injured Ben Cutting on the final morning of a nine-wicket victory over New Zealand at the Gabba, and seems certain to join the team in Hobart when it arrives on Tuesday after enjoying a day off in Brisbane.The margin of Australia’s victory over the visitors may remove some of the urgency for the national selectors to rush back any of the injured quintet that missed selection for the first Test. Mitchell Johnson, Ryan Harris and Shaun Marsh are definitely out of the picture, while Shane Watson and Pat Cummins appear likely to be held back for the greater challenge of India, starting with the first Test on Boxing Day. This places Christian’s free-scoring batting and clever seam bowling very much in the frame for Hobart.”I think it is a good option to have both,” Michael Clarke, the Australia captain, said. “That’s probably why, because he gives us options and that’s what we’re looking at in regards to the wicket in Hobart. We don’t know what we’re going to get, it is always nice to have another option in regards to your bowling, I think a batsman that can bowl a bit.”I’ve used Huss [Michael Hussey] over the last few Tests, and he [Christian] has performed well for South Australia, so at this stage he’s been put on standby for Cuttsy, but he does present a few options, no doubt.”It is a fine reward for Christian, who is on top of the Sheffield Shield run tally this season with 475 at 59.37 for South Australia. Christian has also taken ten wickets this summer and was last year judged the most valuable player across all formats in Australian domestic cricket by the Australian Cricketers’ Association. Christian, 28, has played three Twenty20 internationals, all of which came in early 2010.Cutting was the unlucky bowler to miss out on a place in the first Test against New Zealand at the Gabba, where the selectors preferred Mitchell Starc and James Pattinson.He flew to Melbourne to play in Queensland’s Sheffield Shield game against Victoria but bowled only nine overs due to his injury. Scans revealed that Cutting had a small muscle tear in his side, which will sideline him for four to six weeks, ruling him out of consideration for at least the first two Tests of the India series.And due to the lack of Sheffield Shield cricket in January, when only the Big Bash League is on, Cutting is unlikely to be considered for any of the India Tests with no four-day cricket in which to prove himself.

Traditional rivals Sinhalese SC and Nondescripts CC will meet in the final of the Premier Tier A on Saturday after they won their respective semi-final matches against Chilaw Marians and Colts.SSC coasted to a six-wicket victory, thanks to a match-winning fourth wicket stand between skipper Thilina Kandamby and Kaushal Lokuarachchi. They put on 128 runs after SSC had faltered at the beginning of their chase of 161, losing their first three wickets for 23.Both batsmen hit half-centuries, Kandamby’s comprising three sixes and five fours and Lokuarachchi’s three sixes and two fours. The Chilaw Marians’ batting capitulated against the off-spin of Sachitra Senanayake, whose five wickets included the first three of the innings for ducks. Marians, asked to bat, never recovered from losing three wickets for two runs and their score of 161 wasn’t a threat.In the other semi-final, NCC scraped through, beating Colts by four runs by way of the Duckworth-Lewis rule after rain had interrupted Colts’ run chase. NCC, asked to bat, reached a competitive total of 263 for 9 with Demintha Dahanayake and Jehan Mubarak each making 60. Colts, led by a half-century from Kushal Perera, were on course to overhaul NCC’s total when rain interrupted play and their target was revised to 225 from 45. They fell short by five runs.When SSC and NCC met in the group match, NCC emerged victorious by six wickets.An encouraging development, from Sri Lanka’s point of view, was that two of their injured fast bowlers Dhammika Prasad and Nuwan Kulasekara showed they had recovered to full fitness.Prasad bowled ten overs and took three wickets for 30 for SSC and Kulasekara’s seven overs yielded 37 runs for two wickets.The Premier Tier B final to be played on Friday will be contested between Sri Lanka Navy and Sri Lanka Ports Authority (formerly Seeduwa/Raddoluwa CC). The Navy made short work of Saracens, routing them for 96 and knocking off the runs in 29 overs to >win by five wickets. Chamod Pathirana, with 47 not out, was the only batsman to get into double-figures for Saracens as they fell to the pace of Sattambi Chamika (4 for 22) and the leg-spin of Dulanjana Mendis (3 for 26).Saracens fought back to dismiss half the Navy side for 53, but their own total was too small for their bowlers to defend.SLPACC were involved in a thrilling finish against Sri Lanka Army whom they beat by one run under the Duckworth-Lewis rule. Army had the game in control when they picked up five SLPACC wickets for 107 runs chasing 248. However, at the 35-over mark, SLPACC had made 205 for 5 in 35 overs, which turned out to be the exact score D-L computed as the target when rain intervened. SLPACC were winners by one run thanks to an unbroken 98-run stand between Dinusha Fernando (57) and Ranesh Perera (43).

Kerala thrashed Tripura by an innings and 53 runs at the Nehru Stadium in Kochi. Kerala had taken a first-innings lead on the second day and proceeded to make 316, thanks to Sony Cheruvathur’s 77. Offspinner Udit Patel took 5 for 75 but Tripura were staring at a difficult task trying to stay alive in the game. As it turned out, they were bowled out for 124, worse than their first-innings performance. Kaushal Acharjee top-scored with 47 and the others capitulated; Cheruvathur, Prasanth Parameswaran and Padmanabhan Prasanth grabbed three wickets each to inflict a third straight defeat on Tripura.Himachal Pradesh remained in a strong position against Andhra Pradesh at the Indira Gandhi Stadium in Vijaywada. A century from Paras Dogra had helped them go past Andhra’s score on day two, and Varun Sharma held one end up on day three, reaching his own ton. Himachal, however, only managed to add 74 to their overnight score, getting bowled out for 341, a lead of 76. Andhra scored fluently in their second innings, opener G Shankara Rao leading the way with an unbeaten 96, but lost four wickets by the close. Vishal Bhatia grabbed two wickets and Abhinav Bali removed a set Venugopal Rao, who had added 94 with Shankara. At stumps, Andhra led by 100 with six wickets in hand, a tricky situation to be in heading into the final day.A collective batting performance from Hyderabad put them in control against Assam at the Nehru Stadium in Guwahati. Centuries from opener Akshath Reddy and Syed Qadri helped them gain a first-innings lead of 247, with support from T Suman, who made 88, and cameos from Hanuman Vihari and Ibrahim Khaleel. Reddy added 145 for the second wicket with Suman, taking Hyderabad past the Assam score and Qadri built important stands with the rest to take his team to 474 for 6 declared during his unbeaten 107. Assam were dealt an early blow in their second innings, Amit Sinha falling in the first over.Goa extended their advantage over Jammu and Kashmir at the Gandhi Memorial Science College Ground in Jammu. Having gained a lead of 21 in the first innings, they stretched it to 397 at stumps on the third day. Opener Sher Yadav made 118, striking 18 boundaries, and there were half-centuries from Reagan Pinto and wicketkeeper Rahul Keni. Goa were 268 for 7 at one stage and there was still an opening for J&K, but Keni added 51 with Amit Yadav for the eighth wicket and an unbeaten 56 for the last wicket. The two most likely results are a Goa win or a draw, with the visitors taking three points.Maharashtra dominated the third day against Jharkhand at the Anant Kanhere Maidan in Nasik, putting themselves in an excellent position to win the game. In a combined bowling effort, they bowled out Jharkhand for 283 in the first innings, though the tail wagged – the last three wickets added 99. It wasn’t enough to prevent Jharkhand from following on, however, and they slipped to 218 for 6 by stumps, only 44 ahead. Opener Manish Vardhan made a patient 88, adding 73 for the first wicket, but the Maharashtra bowlers struck at frequent intervals, cutting short any threatening partnership. Seamer Domnic Joseph picked up three wickets, including Vardhan and wicketkeeper SP Gautam, who made 39.Vidarbha were in an excellent position to take a first-innings lead against Services at the Harbax Singh Stadium in Delhi. In response to Vidarbha’s 508 for 6 declared, Services were struggling at 238 for 8 at stumps on the third day. Opener Jasvir Singh made 74 and Soumyaranjan Swain made 70 but Shrikant Wagh, Sandeep Singh and Ravi Jangid each grabbed two wickets to peg back Services, and take their team closer to a minimum of three points.

The spot-fixing trial, involving one of cricket’s greatest controversies, has begun with Pakistan’s Salman Butt and Mohammad Asif appearing in court and a jury being picked and sworn in.Former opening batsman and ex-Test captain Butt and swing bowler Asif sat in at the start of the case at Southwark Crown Court in central London. They are yet to speak as two hours of legal arguments ensued and an appropriate jury was sworn in after lunch with a mixture of racial backgrounds and sexes (six men and six women). Both players were asked if they had any objection to the jury formed and they said: ‘No objections’.Just 30 minutes was required after the lunch break to settle on a jury and Justice Cooke informed the court that proceedings would resume at ten the following morning. Cooke told the jury: “I think you will find this an interesting and unusual case.” He also suggested that some of them would be aware of the case because of its high-profile nature but they were ordered not to research it or to discuss the case outside of the jury roomButt and Asif, who flew in at the weekend from Lahore, are facing the possibility of a custodial sentence if deemed guilty, though both are pleading not guilty. They are facing charges of conspiracy to cheat, and conspiracy to obtain and accept corrupt payments, following the Lord’s Test in August last year when they allegedly conspired to bowl pre-determined no-balls.Both wearing suits, without a tie, they sat in a dock sealed off by a Perspex screen with holes in for hearing purposes. Butt sat alone and listened intently, often leaning forward with a concentrated look on his face. Asif was accompanied by a Punjabi interpreter. Butt’s barrister, Ali Bajwa QC, immediately informed Justice Cooke that his client did not require the services of an interpreter because he had a confident grasp of English.Behind the players’ dock sat interested journalists taking up every seat in the public gallery. They would no doubt have been pleased when Justice Cooke noted early on that they could ‘tweet’ from the courtroom as long as they did it quietly. With reporting restrictions in place, the detail of the legal arguments cannot be repeated at this stage.But Justice Cooke did agree to three clauses that he later read out to potential jurors who were walked into the courtroom. They were told they would need to be available for up to five weeks, and were also informed that they would need to fill out forms asking three questions and if they answered ‘yes’ to any of them they could not sit in the jury.The questions were: 1) Have they or any family members ever worked as a professional journalist or currently work in that capacity. 2) Do they or any family members earn their living from professional cricket? 3) Are they or family members working in the gambling industry?

Glen Chapple, the limping Lancashire captain, sees a bright future for the county after they ended a 77-year wait for the County Championship title. Victory against Somerset, and Warwickshire’s failure to beat Hampshire, brought the season to a dramatic finish for a team that had been tipped to fight against relegation.Most of the team are born and bred in either Lancashire or the nearby areas and the county have made best use of the talent available having realised they wouldn’t be able to invest in personnel. Chapple now believes the likes of Karl Brown, Tom Smith, Simon Kerrigan and Luke Procter – not yet household names – can form the core of a successful side for years to come.”We are basically a young team, with just a few old guys like me clinging on, and the way the team have bonded is very encouraging for the future,” he said. “The Championship is a very difficult trophy to win, but we have kept our cool and our belief. Success breeds success so hopefully we have put in place something that will serve Lancashire cricket well for years to come.”When I was young I was lucky enough to join a really good Lancashire team and won four trophies in no time. You never forget those early successes and our current young players have won the biggest trophy of the lot. Those lads may be young, but they have proved how tough and resilient they are. Winning the title couldn’t be any sweeter, but doing it with a group of players who were written off at the start of the season is even better.”There were so many highlights in the season,” he added. “Beating Yorkshire twice in close games stands out, but I could think of a lot more if I really tried. The lads have been magnificent.”However, the Championship wouldn’t have been won without the efforts of Chapple himself. In the penultimate match he scored a crucial 97 against Hampshire then bowled through the pain of a nasty hamstring injury at Taunton to claim crucial wickets including two on the final day.”I thought I had torn it on the first day, but you can’t bowl with a torn hamstring and I am only human, so we’ll have to see what the scan shows,” he said. “I couldn’t care less what it shows now. Credit our physio, some decent strapping and some tablets for getting me through.”Brown, a 23-year-old batsman, was at the non-striker’s end when Steven Croft hit the Championship-winning runs and spoke about the team’s belief and hardwork. “I doubt that any team has worked harder than us to get to where we are,” he said.”After a few games this season we definitely believed we could win the title. We have gone out there to enjoy our cricket, knowing there would be pressure days like we have had against Somerset. Peter Moores says you have to embrace pressure and that you play cricket for days like today. I’m sure we can put a few good seasons together now and hopefully we will win the title again in the near future.”

Andy Flower, the England coach, has said the ICC should have over-ruled India’s insistence on using a watered-down Decision Review System (DRS) for the ongoing Test series. He felt the system for the series – which doesn’t use ball-tracking technology, and doesn’t allow lbw decisions to be reviewed – was “unsatisfactory”, a view shared by England bowlers Graeme Swann and James Anderson.England had several close lbw appeals turned down as they hunted for wickets on the final day of the Lord’s Test, including against Sachin Tendulkar and Suresh Raina off Stuart Broad. Though England ultimately completed a straightforward 196-run victory to take a 1-0 series lead, Flower was unhappy.”It would have been wrong if the outcome of the game was seriously affected by a couple of those decisions. It’s unsatisfactory the way it is, no doubt about that,” Flower said. “I think the ICC should be stronger in taking a lead on these issues. They are the world governing body and they should lead.”The DRS for this series uses infra-red technology and stump microphones, which meets the minimum standards stipulated by the ICC. Both the ICC and the England board had made it clear before the start of the series that they would have liked to incorporate ball-tracking in the DRS, but for India’s refusal.”We all know that DRS is not going to be 100%, but we also know you get more right decisions using it, so let’s not quibble about millimetres here when we know you get more right than wrong and that’s why most Test-playing nations want to use it.”Swann advocated the use of ball-tracking to ensure more accurate decisions. “I think we should use the Hawk-Eye tracking device because it has worked well over the last couple of years and can take flashpoints out of the game,” he wrote in the . “We all knew Broady’s appeal for lbw against Raina was out but umpire Billy Bowden thought there might have been an inside edge. Similarly, Broady’s shout against Tendulkar would have been given out on review.”They could have been massive moments and, if India had clung on for a draw, there’s no doubt we would have been very frustrated.”Anderson said that the available technology should be used. “We have used it in the last few series we have played and were starting to get used to the method of using it – when you refer and don’t refer. We have enjoyed the fact that at the end of the day more correct decisions were made than the wrong ones. The most pleasing thing was that as frustrating as it was to not have it we managed to not let it affect us and just got on with the job in hand.”The Indian board has long been averse to the DRS and had announced last month that it didn’t want the system to be used in the England series. A compromise on the DRS was thrashed out at the ICC’s annual conference later in the month. The series against England is the first time India are using the review system in Tests since 2008.

Scorecard
Netherlands Women secured their place at the top of the points table with two wins out of two games in the Women’s European Championship, beating the winless Scotland Women comprehensively by 94 runs in Utrecht.After choosing to bat, Netherlands lost opener Miranda Veringmeier cheaply, but a 151-run partnership between Helmien Rambaldo and Caroline Salomons got the innings firmly back on track. Salomons was run out for a patient 71, but Rambaldo carried her bat through the innings, finishing with a career-best 106 not out as the hosts put on 246 for 3.Scotland’s chase lacked momentum all through. While the top order got starts, no-one was able to build adequate innings – the top scorer Leigh Kasperek could manage only 40 off 93 balls before she was bowled by offspinner Esther de Lange. de Lange was one of three to pick up two-fors, as Netherlands’ bowlers shared the wickets around in tidy spells and restricted the visitors well short of their target.

Trent Copeland emerged as a telling reminder of Test cricket’s lowered place in Australian cricket’s pay structure as the selection chairman Andrew Hilditch complained the central contracts system was “not ideal”.Like Michael Beer and Nathan Lyon, Copeland earned Test selection for next month’s tour of Sri Lanka from outside the list of 25 contracted players named by Hilditch last month. However as a medium-pace bowler equipped far better for the long forms of the game than the shorter ones, Copeland has been unable to join them in securing a Big Bash League Twenty20 contract.This means he will fly to Sri Lanka on a middling state contract of around $75,000 a year plus his tour fees, a pittance next to some of the wages being earned by team-mates blessed with Cricket Australia, BBL and Indian Premier League deals.Should he play in the series and the South African tour that follows it, Copeland will be upgraded to a CA deal, but his relatively modest means have provided an instant reminder of how little financial incentive there is left to aspire to a Test career, for all the talk about the lure of the baggy green not being diluted by T20 money.None of Beer, Copeland and Lyon were completely lateral choices, but their “ranking” under CA’s pay scales is severely weakened by the weighting given to limited-overs and T20 cricket. As such, none were deemed worthy of a contract, and Hilditch conceded the system was less than optimal for Test aspirants.”Our priority is Test cricket and I’m sure the players’ priority is Test cricket,” Hilditch said. “That’s the area where we’ve obviously fallen pretty poorly in the rankings and we’ve had the Ashes disappointment, so we’re very much of the view that we have to get back to where we want to be in Test cricket.”Because we rank three forms of the game… that’s just the way the contracts came out. Copeland and Beer were very much in line for Test-match selection. It’s really a totally different issue, the contract list, compared to the squad that we’ve picked for Sri Lanka.”When pressed to suggest a better system, Hilditch said it was not for him to decide, and reiterated that the limitations of the contract structure would not preclude the selectors from picking the teams they felt were the best to represent Australia in Tests.”It’s the system at the moment, but when we come down to pick the Test squad for Sri Lanka, I always knew there would be people from outside the system to be picked in that squad,” Hilditch said. “It doesn’t really affect the selection process at all.”It is obviously difficult when you have three forms of the game. There’s the potential to give 60 players a ranking in one form of the game. Obviously there’s a lot of overlap and it doesn’t work that way in reality, but the reality is a lot of players will get a ranking in one form of the game that won’t get a contract, but when we come to pick the Australian side we’ll pick the best team we can.”Australia’s Test selections may not be clouded by the lack of money seemingly available for Test-match specialists, but the future of the Test team certainly will be if all the money open to aspirants is funnelled into T20. The Australian captain, Michael Clarke, observed as much on the occasion of the 2000th Test, contested between England and India at Lord’s.”Governing bodies must prioritise player performance and payment in Test cricket,” Clarke told the . “The future of Test cricket relies on the investment in continuing to make it the pinnacle of the sport. “It is the toughest form of the game. It requires all the skills of the other two forms of the game, but over five days. The physical and mental intensity of a five-day Test makes Test cricket far and away the pinnacle of the game.”

Match facts

Saturday, June 4, Port of Spain
Start time 1000 (1400 GMT)

Big Picture

It’s déjà vu all over again. A little less than a year ago, India began their World Twenty20 campaign in the West Indies just five days after the IPL. Visibly underprepared and disrespectful of international cricket, India were doomed to not go far. Not much has changed on the Indian side of affairs in 2011. Barely six days will have passed since the end of yet another IPL when India kick off their full tour of the West Indies, again with a T20 international. And just like the last time, the hosts will be forced to play at an un-T20 hour of 10 am, sadly to make sure the television viewer in India gets his 7.30 pm start. The people of Trinidad – who might want to catch up on some T20 fun on a Saturday afternoon or evening – be damned.It serves the broadcasters right then, that India will go through this tour without many of the stars that the Indian TV viewer is believed to never get enough of. West Indies, though, should feel slighted. Virender Sehwag knew he needed a shoulder surgery even before the IPL began. He had a choice to make: he chose the IPL over the West Indies tour. Sachin Tendulkar knew he needed time off cricket: he chose to miss the West Indies Tests but not the IPL.How the world has changed: there was once a time when players might have wanted to miss a West Indies tour out of fear of their fast bowlers. Now West Indies will feel the duo wouldn’t have made similar choices if Tests in England were pitted against the IPL. West Indies will be fuming. West Indies will be inspired. West Indies will want to teach India a lesson. How off the mark can we be? The WICB – rightly or wrongly, who’s to say – is not even picking the best-possible side. Chris Gayle remains more active on Twitter than the cricket field. Jerome Taylor, who just played the IPL, is not considered for selection on fitness grounds. There is trouble in paradise, and we can only sit and watch. At 7.30pm, India Standard Time.

Form guide (most recent first)

West Indies WLLLW
India WWWLL

The spotlight

First day, first show for Duncan Fletcher comes with a young inexperienced team. India won’t look too different once people start retiring after the Australia tour later this year. Fletcher knew he would have to oversee this transition at some time in his tenure. Starting Saturday the new coach gets a sneak-peak into what future holds for him even as India will be interested in seeing what the new coach holds for them.The two captains are a fascinating study. Under Suresh Raina’s previous watch, India finished third in a tri-series involving Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe. He was leading a young team then; this one is not too dissimilar, which means the challenge is just as big.Darren Sammy, on the other hand, will perhaps never play an international without having to justify his presence. Sometimes he passes in flying colours, as he did in the Test that they won against Pakistan, sometimes he doesn’t; at all times he tries gamely, making you wonder what would be if some of the more talented West Indies players played with the same passion and persistence.

Team news

West Indies’ squad is almost identical to the one that beat Pakistan in the T20 on April 21. The only change is that Kemar Roach has been rested. He didn’t play that game anyway. If they keep the winning combination, left-arm medium-pacer Krishmar Santokie will have to wait for his international debut.West Indies (probable) 1 Lendl Simmons, 2 Andre Fletcher (wk), 3 Darren Bravo, 4 Marlon Samuels, 5 Danza Hyatt, 6 Darren Sammy (capt), 7 Christopher Barnwell, 8 Andre Russell, 9 Ashley Nurse, 10 Devendra Bishoo, 11 Ravi RampaulIndia’s squad is so different from their usual ones, they have no previous to start from. The choices begin at the top, with Shikhar Dhawan and Parthiv Patel favourites as openers. The middle order should be a bit easier to pick, but it will be interesting to see if they go with two spinners and, if they choose to do so, who that second spinner will be. There could be an aversion to playing two offspinners, which is believed to be one of the reasons why R Ashwin lost out to Piyush Chawla in the World Cup squad. Munaf Patel and Praveen Kumar will be certainties in the pace attack.India (probable) 1 Shikhar Dhawan, 2 Parthiv Patel (wk), 3 Suresh Raina (capt), 4 Virat Kohli, 5 & 6 two out of S Badrinath, Rohit Sharma and Manoj Tiwary, 7 Yusuf Pathan, 8 Harbhajan Singh, 9 Praveen Kumar, 10 Munaf Patel, 11 R Ashwin/R Vinay Kumar/Amit Mishra/Ishant Sharma

Pitch and conditions

There was heavy rain in Trinidad on the eve of the match, drenching the outfield and bringing the covers on. Scattered thunderstorms have been forecast for the weekend and the following week. If somehow the moisture induces pace and bounce into the pitches, that will be a blessing in disguise.

Stats and trivia

• This is the 200th T20 international. The first was played in February 2005. It took ODIs 12 years to reach No. 200. Incidentally, India and West Indies played the 200th ODI too.
• When India beat West Indies in the 200th ODI, it was a major shock. If they do so in the 200th T20I, it won’t be an upset but a minor milestone nonetheless, for India have never beaten West Indies in a T20I, losing at Lord’s and Kensington Oval in their two previous clashes.
  

  Quotes

  “We have to continue to put in the hard work. We are a confident group of young men, and we will go into the series with the belief that we can win.”
  Darren Sammy shows how mundane press conferences can sometimes be”The West Indies team has been playing good cricket for the past few months, and we are not going to take them lightly.”
  Suresh Raina outdoes Sammy’s “right areas”