India look to make winning start to Test series The West Indies might have lost only one out of the eight Test series' that they have played against India in India. But that does not prevent Sourav Ganguly's men from starting as favourites against the men from the Carribean when the first Test gets underway at Mumbai's Wankhede Stadium today morning. With a batting line-up that is packed with some of the most incandescent names in world cricket and a bowling attack that would relish the familiar conditions which the Wankhede is bound to serve, Ganguly surely will be hoping to make a winning start. India have already decided to leave out the injured Ashish Nehra, Amit Mishra and Shiv Sunder Das from their line-up. Javagal Srinath, Zaheer Khan, Anil Kumble, Harbhajan Singh and Sanjay Bangar will consequently share the bowling workload while Virender Sehwag and Bangar will open the batting. The West Indies for their part will be looking to their captain Carl Hooper, playing his 100th Test, to lead from the front. Ramnaresh Sarwan and Shivnarine Chanderpaul will be two other batsmen whom they will pinning high hopes on. The pitch might be newly relaid but you can bet your bottom dollar that it will turn increasingly as the days go by and hence the team winning the toss would be looking to bat first and pile on a huge score.

Cricket Club of India honours Ganguly, Dravid and Wright Indian skipper Sourav Ganguly, his deputy Rahul Dravid and coach John Wright were honoured on Monday at Mumbai when they were all presented with honorary life memberships to the Cricket Club of India (CCI). The CCI is one of India's oldest clubs, steeped in the best traditions that the British brought to India. Raj Singh Dungarpur, former president of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), presented the trio with the membership at the CK Nayudu Hall in the club. The CCI remains an exclusive club to this day, giving out a few memberships each year to promising young cricketers as playing members. Recently, the club has also taken to giving honorary memberships to deserving people who have made a serious contribution to Indian cricket. Dungarpur, never short of words, was quoted by The Hindu as saying, "I am said to be very critical about Ganguly, but I must say he has improved since. He is an outstanding batsman and captain. He has proved it. He has earned the membership the hard way. Rahul is a superlative batsman and was responsible for recommending John Wright's name as India's coach. I also played a small part in bringing John. They deserve the membership." Also present was Polly Umrigar, former captain of India and Mumbai great. He singled out Dravid's performance in England for special praise. "He was superb and outstanding. I wish I could have been half as good as he was in England. Most willing he was to keep wicket, and he worked for the team, which is laudable. He was adequately rewarded."

India, Australia and South Africa are the World Cup favourites - Simpson Former Australian captain Bobby Simpson, who is a renowned coach these days, feels that India, after their splendid showing in the Champions Trophy, have established themselves as one of the favourites for the 2003 World Cup. Simpson in an interview to the Kolkata-based Tegraph newspaper said, “Australia, India and South Africa are the three most capable of winning. And, if I have to pick a dark horse, I will go for Sri Lanka - they play the one-day game particularly well.” Contrasting the current team with that led by Mohammad Azharuddin, Simpson said, “The biggest difference, going by what I saw in Colombo, is that the current team is very settled and has variety. Moreover, the boys look happy and play as a unit. Also, it’s quite obvious more effort is being put and the fitness has definitely improved. Indeed, the present team looks real good - a contributory factor being the emergence of youngsters like Mohammed Kaif, who are such outstanding fielders.”

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