West Indies back to four-play

Encouraged by, if not fully satisfied with, their collective performance in the second Cable & Wireless Test, the West Indies are set to retain their once prescribed formula of four fast bowlers for the crucial third, starting at Kensington tomorrow.

Merv Dillon, Cameron Cuffy, Adam Sanford and Marlon Black shared all but one of the wickets at the Queen's Park Oval as India were bowled out for 339 and 213, Dillon and Cuffy despatching the last six wickets for 13 in the second innings.

That success, even in a match lost by 37 runs, the history of Kensington and a pitch with a mat of grass on a length is enough to influence the selectors into keeping the same structure.

The only change is in personnel as the left-armer Pedro Collins has already been named instead of Black in the squad of 13.

But coach Roger Harper has put them on notice that he expects more.

Although we bowled India out twice in Trinidad, we're capable of bowling better, he said. If we do that, we can limit them to further low scores.

He called no names but his comment is particularly appropriate to Dillon, the most experienced of the bowlers with 23 Tests and 82 wickets.

He has emerged as the leader of the attack following the retirement of Test cricket's leading wicket-taker, Courtney Walsh, a year ago but has bowled spasmodically in the two Tests with six expensive wickets.

Queen's Park was the first time in 14 Tests under Carl Hooper's captaincy that the West Indies reverted to the four-pronged pace alliance that had been their trademark throughout their unprecedented domination in the 1980s and only the fourth time his bowlers had dismissed the opposition twice in a match.

Leg-spinners Dinanath Ramnarine and Mahendra Nagamootoo and left-arm spinner Neil McGarrell had all featured in the interim.

Ramnarine, who has had nine of his 12 Tests under Hooper, is in the 13 but only because Nagamootoo was injured in a bus crash in Guyana last week.

Nagamootoo was preferred in the first Test but a strained hamstring put him out of the second and medical advice is that his latest misfortune will sideline him for the next month.

When included against South Africa last year, Ramnarine became the first specialist spinner used by the West Indies in a Kensington Test since present team coach Roger Harper served up his off-spin against New Zealand in 1985.

Ramnarine responded with a career-best five for 78 in the second innings and his four for 49 return against the Indians for the Busta XI in St Lucia last weekend has kept him in contention.

But, if he wasn't chosen in his native Trinidad when summoned as cover for Nagamootoo, he surely won't be here.

Not surprisingly, India will also retain their rare preference for pace above spin that served them well at Queen's Park.

They created a furore back home by omitting their most successful bowler, leg-spinner Anil Kumble (318 wickets in 69 Tests) in favour of 21-year-old left-arm fast-medium swinger Asish Nehra on the morning of the match. But Nehra vindicated their decision with five wickets in the match, including Brian Lara and Carl Hooper early on the last day.

The one spinner's spot is between Kumble and off-spinner Harbhajan Singh and Kumble is likely to watch from beyond the boundary once more.

We have to go with three pacemen when we're playing abroad, captain Saurav Ganguly said yesterday.

Significantly, when India last played at Kensington in 1997, they went for three fast bowlers: Venkatesh Prasad, Abey Kuruvilla and Dodda Ganesh. They lost, their batting collapsing to 81 all out when needing 120 to win, but they bowled the West Indies out for 298 and 140 and Kumble took only one wicket.