Change of winds: Viru to open, Kumble only spinner

The Indian team has been pushing its training sessions into the afternoon to get a feel; bowling coach Venkatesh Prasad has been asking his bowlers to practise bowling from either end, hoping for a better treatment from the Doctor.

Just like in the dark past of this city where the breeze would come as a relief from the stench of the corpses of the nearby Fremantle cemetery, the visitors are confident that all the controversies and inconsistent form will be blown away too. On this bouncy Perth pitch, Indians are hoping to bounce back.

One man is crucial to that plan opening out well. Virender Sehwag will re-start his Test career after a one-year gap (replacing Yuvraj Singh), and is expected to be well-equipped with his horizontal blade against the searing pace that the Australians threaten to unleash.

Sehwag will face the new ball with Wasim Jaffer and the rest of the batting line-up now gives a more traditionalist view, though this re-arrangement now looks a bit harsh on VVS Laxman who slips down at number 6 and has to yet again bat with the tail despite a splendid show three places up the order.

Sachin Tendulkar is the only one to have played a Test here and he scored a masterly hundred on a pitch that was among the quickest at its time, and also what is likely to be the same now as well on a re-laid effort to discover the old Perth feeling.

Sehwag never looks at the wicket before he takes guard at the crease —- maybe this is why he becomes a best bet here. There is a deliberate attempt from all the batters — as was discussed in that huddle meeting with Gary Kirsten prior to the last net session today — to forget that it’s WACA and to try and play their natural game. That can be easily done, but the thought will linger on the fact that the team’s most reputed batsmen, its strength, let it down twice. Those in the bowling department have been fine in comparison.

There is a change in the bowling combination —- Irfan Pathan will make a Test appearance here with Sehwag expected to chip in with the off-spin variety. Yuvraj and Harbhajan Singh will do the drinks duty.

The Australians have made two changes. Brad Hogg makes way for the fast and furious Shaun Tait, while Matthew Hayden, India’s nemesis and a heavy run-getter even on this ground, will have to watch his team’s record bid for 17 straight wins sitting in the team balcony.

Chris Rogers will make his debut in his place on his home ground. Who he replaces tomorrow morning is still a little secret, but Indians do know a bit on him after the Canberra encounter and acknowledge his set of impressive scores at the WACA.

Pathan has been looked upon as a weak link in the attack line, but he sure does provide a cushion at number eight with the bat and that supposedly has fetched him the nod. India will do well for that extra padding in the order against the all-four pace attack that Australia are ready to reintroduce after almost a decade and-a-half against any team.

It was against India in 1992 that Mike Whitney, Craig McDermott, Merv Hughes and Paul Riefel crushed India by 300 runs. Tomorrow it will be Brett Lee, Mitchell Johnson, Stuart Clark and Shaun Tait trying an encore.

Fortunately, amidst all this talk of fast bowlers and their exploits, there’s a spinner in there too, who deserves some attention for what will be a magnificent achievement. Anil Kumble is just one short of the 600-wicket mark.