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New Delhi: The hype is back as Sachin Tendulkar once again seeks to record an unprecedented 100th international century, when a near full-strength India take on West Indies in the first Test beginning on Sunday.
The spotlight will be firmly on Tendulkar who missed the milestone by a whisker when he was trapped in front by Tim Bresnan nine runs short of the elusive landmark during the fifth day of the fourth and final Test against England at the Oval earlier this year.
The senior batsman has been stuck on 99 since the ODI World Cup when he hit two centuries, against England and South Africa.
As for the Indian team, the three-match series gains significance as it will not only give them an opportunity to erase the painful memories of the 0-4 debacle at the Old Blighty, where they meekly surrendered the number one status to England, but will also give the players a chance to prepare for the tough upcoming tour of Australia.
However, it will not be a cakewalk for the hosts as the West Indies are coming off a series win in Bangladesh, a much-needed one after a series of disappointing outings, and one that seems to have raised the confidence of the visiting players.
The hosts, on the other hand, will be bolstered by the return of stalwarts Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, Yuvraj Singh and Tendulkar and all of them would look to get into some kind of form ahead of the trip Down Under.
Sehwag has been consistent over the past few seasons while Gambhir and VVS Laxman have already scored two double tons at the Ferozeshah Kotla, hosting its first Test after a 12-month ban.
For Yuvraj, the series will again be a test of character as the elegant left-hander gets one more opportunity to revive his career in the five-day format.
Yuvraj has recently expressed his desire to cement a permanent slot in the Test squad, and it is to be seen whether he is able to achieve that or not.
The ever-reliable Rahul Dravid who has already notched four centuries this year - one in the West Indies followed by three in England where he emerged as the lone bright spot in an otherwise disastrous tour - is expected to continue with his rich vein of form and provide stability to the much-vaunted middle-order.
After suffering his first Test series defeat as skipper, in the tour of England, Mahendra Singh Dhoni would be keen to set the record straight and get back to winning ways as soon as possible.
But on the slow and spin-friendly Indian wickets, the inexperienced bowling attack will have to rise to occasion, if Dhoni harbours hope of smelling the sweet taste of victory again in the five-day format.
In the absence of pace spearhead Zaheer Khan, rookies Umesh Yadav and Varun Aaron, both yet to play Tests, have been selected along with local boy Ishant Sharma.
Yadav and Aaron both impressed with their ability to generate pace and provide breakthroughs in India's 5-0 whitewash of England in the recently-concluded ODI series recently, while Ishant re-emerged as a genuine strike bowler, picking up 22 wickets in three Tests in the West Indies earlier this year.
The Delhi bowler could not really replicate that performance in England, but with added responsibility entrusted upon him in Zaheer's absence, he would look to live upto the expectations.
The new-look spin department is without veteran Harbhajan Singh, who is now battling it out in domestic cricket, after being dropped for the first Test.
Pragyan Ojha has played Test cricket before, but ODI specialist Ravichandran Ashwin and a leg-spinner Rahul Sharma are rank newcomers.
Sharma is not afraid to flight the ball, but Ojha and Ashwin are defensive bowlers, and it will be interesting to see how they operate on tracks, which are likely to provide them assistance, against a batting unit that finally seems to have struck the right chord.
The dominating performance against Bangladesh has given West Indies coach Ottis Gibson reasons to hope. The 1-0 win was their first away from home in eight years.
Kirk Edwards struck a sedate 121 in the first innings while flamboyant left-hander Darren Bravo slammed a fine 195 in the second essay to lay the foundation in the second Test at Mirpur.
Leg-spinner Devendra Bishoo, who has 32 wickets from seven Tests, then produced his maiden five-wicket haul (5/90) to complete a memorable 229-run victory and seal the series 1-0.
While Gibson has pinned his hopes on Bishoo to do the job in the ongoing series, no less potent is the pace attack that comprise of Fidel Edwards, Ravi Rampaul and Kemar Roach besides skipper Darren Sammy who is also a handy batsman.
The likes of Edwards, Rampaul and Roach have shown glimpses of what they are capable of on their day, and the West Indies would hope the trio get into rhythm straightway.
Only two slots seem uncertain for India: No. 6 and the second fast bowler. Yuvraj Singh, Virat Kohli and Ajinkya Rahane are contenders for the first, and Yadav and Aaron for the latter. Yuvraj is the favourite for the first, both the contenders have laid equal claim to the latter.
The big question for West Indies revolves around Ravi Rampaul, who consistently provided them with early breakthroughs in the home season. He then had to make way for Kemar Roach in Bangladesh. However, they can't afford to play both of them because then he will have to take the place of a specialist batsman, the specialist spinner or the captain. Adrian Barath, fit again, should take his opening slot, which means either Kieran Powell or Kraigg Brathwaite will have to sit out.
Teams from
India: MS Dhoni (capt & wk), Gautam Gambhir, Virender Sehwag, Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar, VVS Laxman, Yuvraj Singh, R Ashwin, Pragyan Ojha, Ishant Sharma, Umesh Yadav, Virat Kohli, Varun Aaron, Ajinkya Rahane, Rahul Sharma.
West Indies: Darren Sammy (capt), Adrian Barath, Carlton Baugh (wk), Devendra Bishoo, Kraigg Brathwaite, Darren Bravo, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Fidel Edwards, Kirk Edwards, Kieran Powell, Denesh Ramdin (wk), Ravi Rampaul, Kemar Roach, Marlon Samuels, Shane Shillingford.
Pitch and conditions
It is hoped that the new Kotla will break away from the trend, especially considering November mornings are smoggy in Delhi, which could lead to loss of some play.
Stats and trivia
Match facts
November 6-10, 2011
Start time 9:30 local (0400 GMT)
