By T.R. Ramakrishnan

Gros Islet (St Lucia), June 11 (IANS) Virender Sehwag's blistering hundred made it India's day. At stumps on the first day of the second Test against the West Indies at the Beausejour Stadium, when play finished five overs short despite an extra half-hour, India were in a strong position at 361 for four.

On the days leading to the Test, Rahul Dravid had repeatedly called for a good start. After the skipper did his bit by winning the toss, Virender Sehwag (180, 190 balls, 2 sixes, 20 fours) and Wasim Jaffer (43, 92 balls, 4 fours) responded to the call and gave India just that, with an opening stand of 159 in 30 overs.

Dravid (95 not out, 158 balls, 12 fours) then showed his appreciation of their effort in his own immaculate way. His flawless innings went a long way towards ensuring that India did not throw the advantage away.

The Indian batting still has work to do on the second day. They will need to bat in the same vein and make the West Indians feel the weight of replying to a big score, preferably 500-plus. For pressure seems to be the best way of getting wickets on this track.

The Beausejour wicket, for all its treacherous appearance, with a lot of grass amidst bald patches, turned out to be a featherbed and, as locals had predicted, a batting track. None of the West Indian pacemen got anything out of it, and the West Indies will surely be regretting leaving out spinner Dave Mohammed from the playing XI.

Making his comeback, Pedro Collins got all the Indian wickets to fall on the opening day. He got them more because of the batsmen's mistakes than anything else. Jaffer and VVS Laxman (0) chased balls angled across them by the left-armer, Sehwag got a leading edge as he tried to play one to the onside and Yuvraj Singh (2) played all over a straight ball.

There was nothing like the pace and bounce as in the first Test at the Antigua Recreation Ground, and Sehwag realised that early in the day as he blazed away spectacularly.

His innings had two distinct phases, one fiery before lunch, when everything went screaming off his bat, the other post-lunch, when he was quiet and scratchy, to the extent that Dravid outscored him for most part of their 139-run third-wicket stand.

Some of Dravid's strokes stood out in the excellence of their execution and that's saying something on a day when Sehwag's blitz had given the cricket connoisseur his bellyful before lunch.

Sehwag and Dravid looked so much at ease that the only way they seemed like getting out was if they ran themselves out. They came close to it quite a few times. Even the runs which fetched Dravid his 50 came in a riskily run three.

The Indians had lost their aggression in running between the wickets some time during the one-day series. During the second innings at Antigua they seemed to be regaining it and on Saturday, it was more in evidence. There were quick, sharp singles and often one was taken for the throw, converting twos into threes.

It's an indication of confidence slowly creeping back into the side and that is surely a good sign. The bowlers will need plenty of it if India is to make the most of this wonderful start.

Scoreboard

India (1st innings):

Wasim Jaffer c Bravo b Collins 43
Virender Sehwag c and b Collins 180
V.V.S. Laxman c Ramdin b Collins 0
Rahul Dravid batting 95
Yuvraj Singh b Collins 2
Mohammed Kaif batting 18

Extras (4b, 7lb, 3w, 9nb) 23

Total (for 4 wkts in 85 overs) 361

Fall of wickets: 1-159, 2-161, 3-300, 4-306

Bowling:

Pedro Collins 20-4-75-4
Jerome Taylor 17-2-56-0 (5nb)
Dwayne Bravo 10-0-66-0 (1w)
Corey Collymore 14-1-57-0 (3nb)
Ian Bradshaw 14-4-45-0 (1nb)
Ramnaresh Sarwan 10-0-51-0 (2w)