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'A new-look Indian team'
Wisden CricInfo staff - May 31, 2002

India return to their favourite venue hoping to wrap up the one-day series with a victory in the fourth match against the West Indies, starting at the Queen's Park Oval on June 1. India are leading 1-0 in the five-match series following their emphatic seven-wicket win in the previous game at Bridgetown in Barbados on Wednesday. The first two one-dayers in Jamaica were abandoned due to rain without a ball being bowled, thus effectively making this a three-game series.

India have won just three out of 38 Tests in West Indies since 1952-53, with all of their victories coming at this venue. India skipper Sourav Ganguly said his team was confident of posting a victory here and salvaging pride after having lost the five-Test series 2-1 against West Indies.

"We'd like to return home with a win," he said, adding he was expecting another impressive performance from his young players in order to clinch the series. Youngsters played a prominent role in India's victory in the last match, with fast bowler Tinu Yohannan and Dinesh Mongia stealing the show in their first big match of the tour in nearly two months.

Neither of them could find a place in the Test teams, but showed in their first important game that they had it in them to produce matchwinning performances. The 23-year-old Yohannan made his one-day debut at Bridgetown, but bowled like a veteran to finish with 3-33 off 10 overs. His early strikes denied a solid start to the West Indies, who were dismissed for a modest 186.

Left-handed Mongia, 25, then saw to it that Yohannan's effort did not go waste as he slammed a robust 74 to steer his team to a comfortable victory. He was named man of the match for his strokeful knock.

Ganguly said the team's fielding had improved with the inclusion of Yuvraj Singh, Mohammad Kaif and Virender Sehwag, who joined the squad after the Test series.

West Indies captain Carl Hooper conceded his team had been caught on the wrong foot by a young Indian side in the last match.

"It was a new-look Indian team. We thought we knew a thing or two about the opposition after having played five Tests in two months, but we were in for a big surprise," said Hooper.

The West Indies skipper blamed batting for the defeat in the last game, saying he was expecting a better show from his batsmen in a must-win match. Hooper alone gave a good account of himself in his team's dismal batting display at Bridgetown as he smashed a 75-ball 76 not out, but received little support from his team-mates.

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