Onus on Team India to keep series alive, Lara wants to wrap it up

Port of Spain, May 25 (UNI) India face the daunting task of staying alive in the series when they take on the West Indies in the fourth one-day to be played here tomorrow.

The visitors squandered the first match victory advantage as the West Indies clawed back to win the next couple of games and they now lead the five-match series 2-1 and the Men in Blue must win tomorrow to keep the series alive.

Yuvraj Singh practised at the Queen's Park Oval here and his fitness would come as good news for the Indians who have relied heavily on the southpaw to deliver finishing punches in the last one year.

Yuvraj missed the third ODI due to back spasms after scoring masterly 93 in the second match. A final decision on him will be taken only tomorrow morning. However, the team management is pretty hopeful that Yuvraj would be able to play.

The series also puts the Greg Chappell- Rahul Dravid combination under scanner. The coach and skipper have combined well to set up a series of Indian wins in the shorter version of the game, which also includes a record string of 17 successful run chases.

But the run has already been broken in the second ODI in Jamaica and after winning the third one-day, the West Indies looks to have the upper hand in the series.

That most of the recent Indian wins have come on the Indian sub-continent brings enough criticism that the victories have come on home or similar conditions. Chappell realises well that a win tomorrow would quell some of the searing doubts but he also says that injuries to key players in the series have hampered his plans.

India missed the services of Yuvraj, S Sreesanth and Ramesh Powar at various points in the series due to fitness problems.

''Some of the main players have been unavailable for selection (due to injuries) but I don't see that as an excuse. We have to make do with whatever we have got and whoever we have got. We have a plan and I am sure we would come good,'' said Chappell.

Chappell also gave credit to the West Indies team for back-to-back wins and said that nothing could be taken away from them.

''They have played really well until now. I think the series win against Zimbabwe did a world of good to their confidence and they have been really pulling off victories,'' said Chappell.

He, however, sees a silverlining for India in the reversal of West Indies fortunes.

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