Hooper expects pace bowlers to deliver against India

West Indies captain Carl Hooper is looking at his pace attack to rattle India when the first of five Tests starts at the Bourda cricket ground on Thursday.

"We've picked four pacemen in the 13-man squad and we also have the option of the leg-spinner with me pitching in with some off-spinners," Hooper said after a team practice session on Tuesday.

Hooper's confidence -- despite his team's five straight Test losses -- stems not only from the fact that India has not won a series outside South Asia since beating England in 1985-86, but also from the form shown by most of his players in domestic cricket.

"Most of the guys here have been in great form," said Hooper. "Stuart Williams ...almost picked himself by scoring 970-odd runs in the Busta competition. Junior Murray hit four hundreds at the first class level. Ryan Hinds is a very effective bat. The guys are looking sharp."

However Hooper is aware his West Indies side is still struggling to replace former pace spearheads Courtney Walsh and Curtly Ambrose.

"It's not easy to replace Walsh and Ambrose but we will be relying (on) Merv Dillon, Cameron Cuffy, Marlon Black and Adam Stanford to deliver the goods," Hooper said.

High hopes are also expected from leg-break bowler Mahendra Nagamootoo, who set a domestic record this season with 50 wickets.

The return of Brian Lara after a three-month layoff from an elbow injury adds depth to a batting line-up consisting of Hooper, Williams, Chris Gayle, Ramnaresh Sarwan and Shivnarine Chanderpaul.

But what many people believe could turn the series is the head-to-head duel between Lara and Sachin Tendulkar, both of whom are capable of single-handedly changing the tone of a game.

EMULATING BRADMAN

"Sachin is a great batsman, but we have the bowlers who can get him out. I'm sure he'll have his days on this tour. We just hope he doesn't score too many," Hooper said.

Tendulkar has 7,673 Test runs in 91 Tests at an average of 58.57 and will be looking to emulate Australian Don Bradman's 29 Test hundreds at Bourda. Only former Indian captain Sunil Gavaskar, with 34, has more Test centuries.

Lara's 7,221 runs in 83 Tests have come at 50.49 but his 18 centuries include three double tons and a world record 375 not out against England in 1994.

"Lara is the one man we will all be looking to get out," said India's left-arm pace bowler Zaheer Khan. "We know how hard it is to get his wicket and we'll have to make sure we give our best against him."

Indian captain Saurav Ganguly said his side would be named on Thursday morning but suggested Deep Dasgupta would open the innings and keep wickets.

"We were a little concerned about Dasgupta's keeping but he did well in the side match. His batting gives the team a lot of balance," he said.

Off-spinner Harbhajan Singh is the only injury concern because of the shoulder injury he suffered in a warm-up game on Sunday.

Team physiotherapist Andrew Leipus told Reuters on Tuesday that Harbhajan may have to undergo a fitness Test before a final verdict.

Off spinner Sarandeep Singh, who made his debut against Zimbabwe in 2000, has joined the Indian squad to partner leg-break bowler Anil Kumble if Harbhajan is ruled out.

Squads:

India: Saurav Ganguly (captain), Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar, Wasim Jaffer, Deep Dasgupta, Shiv Sundar Das, Vangipurappu Laxman, Dinesh Mongia, Ajay Ratra, Sanjay Bangar, Javagal Srinath, Anil Kumble, Harbhajan Singh, Sarandeep Singh, Tinu Yohannan, Zaheer Khan, Ashish Nehra.

West Indies: Carl Hooper (captain), Chris Gayle, Stuart Williams, Ramnaresh Sarwan, Brian Lara, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Ryan Hinds, Junior Murray, Mervyn Dillon, Cameron Cuffy, Marlon Black, Adam Stanford, Mahendra Nagamootoo.

Mail Cricket Editor