The grass wasn't quite so green for India today. It didn't turn out to be quite as dreadful a day as Sourav Ganguly would have feared at tea, but it certainly wasn't what he had hoped for after winning the first toss of the series. Yes, at 287 for 4, it was Carl Hooper who had the last snigger. Not least because he was now together with his favourite partner, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, and had already received his customary slice of luck when SS Das dropped him on 10.

Yet, Ganguly can't be blamed for inserting West Indies. First there was the sight of grass on a pitch that was expected to play somewhere between testing and wicked. Then, there were the statistics. Thrice in his two-year captaincy career has Ganguly opted to field on winning the toss. India have won two of those Tests. The third one was a draw, but it came in South Africa where anything that is not a loss is almost a victory.

There were two problems. One, the pitch wasn't wicked. Second, and more important, the bowlers were hopeless. There was an occasion to be risen to, but only the West Indian batsmen chose to rise to it. The bowlers did nothing in the air, off the wicket, and didn't find the line and length that compensates for the absence of all movement.

It's not as if they didn't try things. By mid-afternoon, all bowlers had bowled from all ends, and most of them tried both sides of the wicket. By tea, Ganguly was toying with a 7-2 offside field with five men on or just inside the 30-yard circle. Not good enough.

Zaheer Khan remains frustrating. He is not the best seamer in this Indian squad, but he is one most likely to find the occasional snorter. Today he bowled one, to Chris Gayle, but he couldn't have sent down more four balls if he tried. Encouraged by the green, he started out at a length perfectly pullable and cutable. When he changed ends, he found just the spot for a left-hander to practice the on drive. Overall, he went for almost four an over, about the same as Harbhajan Singh, who was almost as disappointing as Zaheer.

Hopes rose when three wickets fell for 18 runs late in the day. Very briefly. It was time for Hooper and Chanderpaul again. How on earth must India deal with them tomorrow? Hooper at least gives chances, though he is routinely forgiven. Chanderpaul, he's a rock. Sometime tomorrow, he should go past 1440 unbeaten minutes for the series, and become the first batsman to stay at the crease for what will be the equivalent of an entire day.

India will also sooner or later have to come to terms with the fact that they must chase a total – unless they are made to follow-on or they win by an innings - in a high-pressure situation. And they will have to do so on a pitch that is expected to get faster. It looks quite gloomy.

Rahul Bhattacharya is a staff writer with Wisden.com in India. His reports will appear here throughout the Test series.

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