India fight with Raina and Harbhajan Singh

There seemed to be three different pitches at Sabina Park today. The first, on which Fidel Edwards, Ravi Rampaul and Devendra Bishoo caused India much discomfort, reducing them to 85-6. The second, on which Suresh Raina and Harbhajan Singhadded 146 in 28 overs with liquid ease. The third, on which Amit Mishra got awkward bounce and sharp turn to trouble the West Indies batsmen.It now seems the second scenario was an aberration and the game will tend to reward bowlers. At the end of the first day's play in Jamaica, while West Indies sit at a comfortable 34-1 in reply to India's 246, getting a lead on this fast-aging wicket won't be easy.

India elected to bat with three Test debutants today. As they nearly always do upon their return to Test cricket after a long limited-overs season, Indians bat like the millionaires they are and get out playing forceful strokes. Murali Vijay mistimed a drive to point, debutants Abhinav Mukund and Virat Kohli went hard at balls outside off, and played on and got caught behind, respectively.

India's batting centres around Rahul Dravid and VVS Laxman and today wasn't their day. Both looked in discomfort against the uneven bounce of West Indies pacers. The two along with Dhoni were done in by a top-class spell by Devendra Bishoo either side of lunch. But the day's big story was the triumphant return of Fidel Edwards to international cricket after a two-year injury break.

Edwards nearly had Mukund in the first over as he inside edged a drive past his leg-stump for his first runs in international cricket. Rampaul got rid of both openers after which Edwards had Kohli caught behind. Edwards then removed Harbhajan with a well-directed bouncer -- caught both feet off the ground by Bishoo running in from square-leg -- to end India's fight back, and then quickly worked out the tail-end.

BISHOO PREVAILS OVER INDIA'S VETERANS

It took one ball for the impressive leg-spinner to leave his mark on the game. Bishoo tossed his first ball up inviting a drive. Laxman went for it half-heartedly and edged it to slip.

Dravid, playing his 150th Test here, too was stretched by Bishoo who kept looping his leg-spinners up outside off. The veteran kept playing away from his body and the youngster was only too happy to let him have it that way.

After lunch, Dravid stopped blocking and drove two of those balls through cover for four. Bishoo's response was to toss one up further. This one was angled into Dravid, but it bounced a little more as it spun away, taking the edge to slip.

Extra bounce did in Dhoni too. As the Indian captain played a loosely constructed forward defence, the ball kicked up and took the shoulder of the bat to gully. After a miserable score of 69-4 at lunch, India were now at 85-6.

HARBHAJAN, RAINA TO THE RESCUE

Harbhajan began his innings clumping Bishoo down the ground for four. Batting at 8, he was the first Indian batsman of the day who looked in complete control. His first task was dismantling Bishoo. So the leg-spinner was cut away and slog-swept for two more fours. Bishoo first four overs produced 2-15, his next seven 0-60. His full line posed no threat to Raina, who kept effortlessly driving away his in-coming deliveries for fours.

Harbhajan's stand-out shot was a backfoot punch through extra cover for four off Rampaul. It was the third four of that over. Rampaul had bowled incisively in the morning but had weakened substantially as the day progressed. Having raced to 45 (35b) with a torrent of boundaries, Harbhajan slowed down to let Raina take charge.With all his technique and temperament problems in the recent ODI series and in the Test matches he'd played earlier, Raina has rarely looked like he knows what he's doing. Today it wasn't so. His runs were made with consummate ease. The seventh-wicket fightback was almost casual in nature. It was that casualness which led toHarbhajan'

s downfall when his job seemed far from over.

Edwards's barrage of short balls and some verbal back-and-forth had charged up Harbhajan, who chased a bouncer from outside the off-stump. The shot was mistimed completely, but not Bishoo's jump which was timed perfectly as he ran in from deep square leg, flew to his left and took an outstanding catch.

That was the cue for West Indies. Praveen Kumar, playing his first Test, was removed quickly as was Amit Mishra. Praveen batting with Raina might have been the first instance in Test cricket where both batsmen at the crease were from Uttar Pradesh. He fell LBW to Edwards.

Mishra was bounced out by Edwards and took a long time to leave the crease as he tried to tell the umpire that the ball had gone off his arm guard, not the gloves. Raina was in sight of a hundred but didn't last long.

West Indies began gingerly losing Lendl Simmons caught at short leg off Ishant. While Harbhajan managed to get plenty of turn, he chose to blunt it himself by switching to around the wicket, a method which effectively rules out getting batsmen LBW or bowled.West Indies' middle order is stodgy. But sharp turn and bounce could be India's best weapons.