Don't be too surprised if you hear strains of Van Morrison's Too Long in Exile emanating from the West Indian dressing-room ahead of the one-day series against India. Even a cursory look at their limited-overs record in India is most revealing, in that it charts their decline more accurately than any 300-page tome ever could. From October 1983, when they played their first match here, to October 1989, West Indies won 14 out of the 15 matches they contested, and that too against an Indian side that was pretty handy against other teams. Since then, from November 1993 to February 1996 (their last outing in India, when they were beaten by five wickets in a World Cup match), they won only three of eleven, with a losing streak that stands at five.

Most accept the fact that West Indies lost their way in Test cricket shortly after the home reverse against Australia in May 1995, but the one-day rot had set in almost a decade earlier. It stemmed mainly from a refusal to change, an inability to accept the fact that tactics that worked perfectly in the World Cup victories of 1975 and '79 were long past their expiry date. The rabid fan might see a World Cup semi-final appearance in 1996 as a bright spot, but how much wattage can you get from a showing that also included a crushing defeat at the hands of Kenya?

By contrast, India, after a slump in one-day form in the latter part of the 1990s, are once again on the upswing. There is a sense of purpose about the side, a balance and a focus, that means the absence of Sachin Tendulkar – with a hamstring strain – no longer constitutes a national crisis.

With Tendulkar missing from the middle order, there has been talking of introducing Ajit Agarkar as a pinch-hitter. But that would be clutching at straws when more sturdy options – VVS Laxman and Mohammad Kaif, to name just two – are available. It must be very tempting to experiment with the formation - one eye on the World Cup and all that - but if India overdo it, they could lapse back into the losing habits that they fought so hard to change.

The bowling remains a worry, without Zaheer Khan to lead the line. His absence, however, means a chance to take a good look at the bench strength and the claims of Agarkar, JP Yadav and Sanjay Bangar.

West Indies will almost certainly include Ricardo Powell – famous for little else other than his sweet tooth for Indian bowling - and Corey Collymore, two of the one-day specialists flown in, in the XI. The in-form Marlon Samuels should also find a place in a batting line-up that thrills to the beat of cavalier strokeplay.

On paper, it's a formidable side capable of an upset or two at the World Cup. If nothing else, this series will tell us something about whether they have the discipline and attention to detail that characterise successful sides.

For India, it will be a good workout in familiar conditions, in front of crowds that will once again feed on the Sehwag frenzy, especially with Tendulkar absent. Their biggest enemy could well be complacency. As their opponents could tell them, the losing habit is as easy to acquire as its winning counterpart is difficult. And it's a long road back from exile.

Probable teams
India 1 Sourav Ganguly (capt), 2 Virender Sehwag, 3 VVS Laxman, 4 Rahul Dravid (wk), 5 Mohammad Kaif, 6 Yuvraj Singh, 7 Ajit Agarkar, 8 Harbhajan Singh, 9 Javagal Srinath, 10 Anil Kumble, 11 Ashish Nehra.

West Indies 1 Shivnarine Chanderpaul, 2 Chris Gayle, 3 Wavell Hinds, 4 Ramnaresh Sarwan, 5 Carl Hooper (capt), 6 Marlon Samuels, 7 Ricardo Powell, 8 Ridley Jacobs (wk), 9 Mervyn Dillon, 10 Corey Collymore, 11 Pedro Collins.

Dileep Premachandran is assistant editor of Wisden.com in India.

© Wisden CricInfo Ltd