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Day 1: India set out on long, hard road

The omens did not look too good for India on the first day of their five-match series against West Indies, who reached 170 for three at tea. On a Sabina Park pitch so hard and true that county cricketers would refer to it as ``a road'', runs came at a steady rate, even though the bowling was generally disciplined.

West Indies won the toss and began well, tucking into some palat- able fare dished up by an uncharasterically wayward Venkatesh Prasad, whose first six overs cost 36. Bowling here can prove awkward with the square raised above the level of the run-ups, and Prasad never settled into a rhythm.

Instead, it was Abey Kuruvilla, the replacement for the badly missed Javagal Srinath, who ensured some sort of order in the first hour. Thought to be the tallest of all Indian Test crick- eters, at 6ft 6ins, Kuruvilla initially maintained an immaculate line and length.

Loping in from a long run-up with steps that were surprisingly short given his Ambrose-like legs, Kuruvilla conceded just 10 runs in his opening eight-over spell and removed Stuart Williams. This was with a slower ball which he used with understandable re- gularity as movement in the air and off the seam was minimal.

With the newly relaid pitch offering precious little bounce, Anil Kumble's threat was also negated. The Indians, therefore, did well to restrict the West Indies to three runs an over, although in this respect, they were helped by lack of pace in the pitch which made stroke playing difficult. All the West Indies batsmen, however, managed at times to entertain a disappointingly small crowd of around 4,000 with some vivid attacking shots. Shivnarine Chanderpaul's pulls and on-drives helped him to yet another Test fifty. The ball that dismissed him was a good one from Prasad, coming back into him just enough, but it was a disappointing shot.

Sherwyn Campbell also fell to an adventurous shot to the left-arm spin of Sunil Joshi when apparently well set. Aiming to cut a shortish ball that was a little too close to off stump, he was well caught at the wicket.

This brought in Brian Lara, who appeared determined to embark on a long innings after under-achieving in Australia. Even so, he was soon launching into some classical offside drives that had more than one fielder ringing his hands in pain.

Carl Hooper was nothing like as convincing as Lara, but survived an edgy start after being troubled by the two Indian spinners. Joshi was preferred to a third seamer, Dodda Ganesh, and rewarded the selectors' faith in him with a long and accurate spell after lunch.

Day 2: Kumble keeps West Indies in check with five wickets

That the expected avalanche of runs from the West Indies did not materialise can be attributed to some very accurate Indian bowl- ing, in particular from Anil Kumble.

Beginning the second day of this first Test on 300 for four, the West Indies were restricted to 427 all out. In the half hour that India had to negotiate before tea, they moved somewhat uneasily to 22 for no wicket.

For all his brilliance on Indian pitches (97 wickets at an aver- age of 21 in home Tests), Kumble has a disappointing record in away Test matches (57 victims at the expensive average of 38 pri- or to this game).

Having been wicketless in his 21 overs on the first day, Kumble finished with five for 120 from 42.4 overs, the first time since South Africa in 1992-3 that he has taken five wickets in a Test innings out of India.

Kumble bowled his wrist-spin as much as he has always done, patiently, steadily, probing away, preying on batsmen's nerves.

As ever, relentless accuracy was his watchword, and on a slow pitch he simply wore down the West Indians, bowling unchanged from the northern end for all but the first two overs of the day.

It began with the two teams, for the second morning in succes- sion, observing a minute's silence before the start of play.

President Cheddi Jagan of Guyana's death on the eve of the match was followed the night before last by that of Michael Manley, the former Jamaican prime minister and author of The History of West Indies Cricket.

But it did not take long for a small crowd to shed its quietness as the night watchman, Ian Bishop, and Carl Hooper sought to at- tack the second new ball from the outset.

Hooper, 87 overnight after playing quite brilliantly on the first day when he scored 77 in the final session, soon moved to his seventh Test hundred off 157 balls with his 15th four, a typical- ly deft leg glance off Kumble. Thereafter, however, he never really rediscovered the wonderful rhythm of his batting the pre- vious day, eventually falling to a catch at mid-off when he tried to hit on the up.

Indian relief at removing Brian Lara just before stumps on the first day was soon supplanted by frustration at their inability to get rid of Bishop, who lasted a further 90 minutes before mis-cueing Kumble to mid-off.

Kumble then quickly dismissed Junior Murray, who was lbw caught in the crease.

Later he had the debutant Roland Holder well caught at slip after scratching his way to 17 in 69 balls. Curtly Ambrose and Courtney Walsh presented him with their wickets.

Lara's 83 off 141 balls was an innings of at times considerable discipline, even though he still played several scintillating shots before being unluckily caught behind trying to leg glance.

Day 3: Kuruvilla a tall story for India

Abey Kuruvilla never played cricket seriously while at school and was languishing in lower grade club cricket in Bombay at the start of the 1990-91 season. By chance, an Indian cricket writer saw him trundling in off a somewhat ungainly run-up but was struck by his height, 6ft 6in. Following a hunch and knowing that Frank Tyson, the former England fast bowler, was due in India to select and coach a group of promising young seamers, the journal- ist put Kuruvilla's name forward.

Tyson was so immediately taken by Kuruvilla's potential that he recommended he be put straight into the Bombay side for the showpiece of the Indian domestic season, the Ranji Trophy final. This was a big gamble but he did not disappoint, making an impressive first-class debut. Bombay lost the match to Haryana, but glori- ously by only a few runs after Kuruvilla and Dilip Vengsarkar had shared a heroic last-wicket stand.

Tyson worked hard on Kuruvilla, taking him to Australia to play grade cricket. Improvement followed steadily and in 1994, the man who would become India's tallest Test cricketer took five for 42 for Bombay against the West Indies.

But not until the 1996-97 domestic season were the national selectors convinced that Kuruvilla was consistent enough for international cricket. At the ripe old age of 28, he was picked for the tour of the West Indies.

Bowling into the wind at quickish medium, Kuruvilla's opening spell in Test cricket was 8-3-10-1. Not bad on a complete road of a pitch, a batsman's one, particularly as the able Venkatesh Prasad was going for 36 off his first six overs at the other end. Kuruvilla finished with three for 82 off 30 overs, and so bare is the Indian pace bowling cupboard that he could well have a lengthy Test career ahead of him.

India were not alone in selecting an unknown pace bowler. The West Indies picked Franklyn Rose, 25, after his 18 Red Stripe wickets at 14 this season and Rose claimed Venkata Laxman, Rahul Dravid and Sachin Tendulkar before lunch yesterday.

Day 4: Rose looks 'a gem' but Indians fight back

West Indian disappointment at their failure to push home their advantage against India in this first Test, which at tea yester- day was heading for a draw, will be offset by their discovery of a fast bowler of considerable potential.

Franklyn Rose's figures of six for 100 are the best by a West In- dian pace bowler making his debut. What is more, they were re- turned on a slow pitch, devoid of any real bounce, and on which his more illustrious colleagues failed to extract the same move- ment or life.

Rose, 6ft 6ins, shaven-headed and a natural athlete, has come from nowhere this season, which he began in the Jamaican squad after personal problems had confused him so badly that he decided to retire from the game a year ago.

But when he felt better, the island's selectors recalled him and 18 Red Stripe wickets at an average of 14 vindicated their faith.

In their search for new talent following defeat in Australia, the West Indies may have unearthed a gem. Twice in successive innings he has bowled Sachin Tendulkar cheaply (the first time for Jamai- ca). All but one of his six victims over the weekend were top- order players, and the ball that straightened to bowl Abey Kuru- villa was wasted on him.

Courtney Walsh's frustration at not being able to finish India off on Saturday afternoon continued yesterday morning. India resumed on 308 for seven and held out for another 75 minutes, helped by the fact the ball was 49 overs old at the start.

It had, therefore, taken the West Indies nearly three sessions to prise out the last five Indian wickets. If India do save this match, this will explain how they escaped.

West Indies will rue three dropped catches and some bad field placement by Walsh. Nayan Mongia, whose gritty and gutsy 78 occu- pied just over five hours, had made only one when he edged Rose through an unaccountably vacant third-slip position. Walsh post- ed one for the next ball but the horse had bolted.

Walsh dropped a sitter at midwicket off Shivnarine Chanderpaul on Saturday evening when Mongia was 68, costing valuable time. In the previous over, Sunil Joshi was missed at deep mid-off off Carl Hooper. He went on to grind out a Test-best 43 in 196 minutes.

Worst of all, Saurav Ganguly was put down by Junior Murray off Rose just one run into their 81-run sixth-wicket partnership. Had the chance been held, India would have been 154 for six against fresh bowlers.

As it was, they tired quite noticeably on this most placid of pitches, which allowed lower-order batsmen with lesser technique to get well forward without fear of being hit.

Another handicap, for anyone bowling from the Headley Stand end, was that the level of the pitch since it was recently relaid is now considerably higher than the run up. Ian Bishop said this seriously affected the balance in the delivery stride of all the seamers, causing a loss of pace and forcing them wide of the crease.

Day 5: Lara's brilliance adds shine to draw

Even without the rain which prevented any play until shortly be- fore tea, the West Indies would have been hard pressed to bowl India out on the final day of the drawn first Test in Kingston.

The occasional ball kept low but the pitch lacked pace and bounce so badly that it was a front-foot plodder's dream. The match was heading for a draw with the Indians needing 323 to win after the home side declared their second innings at 241 for four.

Apart from Franklyn Rose's exceptional debut and Carl Hooper's outstanding hundred, the match will be remembered for an innings of rare brilliance by Brian Lara. His 78 off 83 balls in the fi- nal session of the fourth day was an absolute gem, coming after only 61 runs had been taken off the previous 34 overs.

Lara's rate of scoring was by some way the quickest of the match, and an achievement in itself as the ball did not come on to the bat except when new. Some of Lara's footwork was as breath- tak- ing as some of his shots, for the only way to break free of the Indian spinners' stranglehold was by fast use of the feet.

Cuts, both late and full-blooded, sweeps and deft deflections were all on Lara's menu before he was finally out, having scored nearly three-quarters of the 122 runs added so exhilaratingly with Shivnarine Chanderpaul in 22 overs.