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Weather no worry, but pitch seems difficult
Indian coach says team might consider playing an extra bowler in the second Test.
There have been showers every day since the Indian cricket team landed in St Lucia on Wednesday. Not downpours, but short, sharp spells. The rainy season has just begun in these Windward Islands.
But locals say there is little danger of rain affecting the second India-West Indies Test, starting on Saturday.
Reds Perreira, the veteran West Indian commentator, who hails from St Lucia, says the Beausejour Stadium in Gros Islet is one of the driest areas in the island. "They chose that site for the cricket ground because it gets the least rain," he said.
There's a lot more uncertainty about the state of the pitch. It has a lot of green but also a lot of brown patches.
West Indian skipper Brian Lara said this pitch was very different from the earlier pitches he'd seen here. Those were batting wickets.
Indian coach Greg Chappell felt the wicket reminded him of the old Sydney wickets and pointed out that it would be slow.
He indicated that the team might consider playing an extra bowler after seeing the wicket a final time before the start of play. Whether they do so or not will depend on off-spinner Harbhajan Singh's fitness.
He was reported to be suffering from a mild groin strain on Friday.
