Ganguly at home with everything to play for

Hemang Badani was the last man to leave the Indian nets. Spending a long time stroking the ball freely, the Tamil Nadu southpaw batted while Sachin Tendulkar stood around and made observations. That in itself is not of great significance. In the light of Rahul Dravid's poor mental form and his recent illness however, it assumes larger proportions.

"Rahul Dravid has had a slight fever since yesterday. The situation hasn't improved and that's why he didn't have any practice today. We'll assess the situation tomorrow before making a decision," said coach John Wright on Dravid's condition. If Dravid is still unfit tomorrow when the second Test match between India and Australia starts, then Badani could be looking at a baptism by fire at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata.

The Indian captain was not too overawed by the fact the home side had gone 0-1 down in the first Test at Mumbai. "I've seen the wicket. It looks a good track. We should be in for a hard fought Test match. The crowds here will be coming to see India win," said the Indian skipper in his hometown. The crowds may be coming to see an Indian win but that won't happen unless the Indian scan get their team composition right and go into the match with the correct approach. "I would like to play five bowlers in this game. But if I can get away with it, I'll go into the match with four bowlers," said Ganguly. In Mumbai, the Indians managed to snare quick wickets early on, but could not move in for the kill. Ganguly was not particularly concerned by that. "One more wicket could have changed the course of the game," he said, stating the obvious.

Unfortunately, a game of Test cricket is not about players only. It's not simply about individuals going their best and this somehow adding up to a victory. The way a captain handles his resources can make the difference between an ordinary side and an effective side. The Indian skipper seemed lost for ideas when Matthew Hayden and Adam Gilchrist blazed away and stole the match from India at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. For the first time in his stint as captain, Ganguly will be taking the field in a Test match at Kolkata. "That doesn't put any extra pressure on me. I know the conditions here very well and that should work to our advantage," he said. In the ongoing Test match between England and Sri Lanka, Nasser Hussain came out of a long run of bad form by slamming a century and putting England in the driver's seat. Ganguly too will have to pull something special out of the hat if he wants make a difference in this match. "I have not spent enough time in the middle. That's the problem. I've been playing so long there are bound to be some failures. I know I'll come out of it sooner or later," said the beleaguered Indian captain. India will be hoping that happens sooner rather than later.

Ganguly put on a brave front at the Eden Gardens. However, the concern, even worry, was writ large on his face. Going one down against this Australian side is a situation most people in the cricket world would avoid like the plague. India, in the meantime, have got themselves into exactly that situation. Australian skipper Steve Waugh has turned the pressure on from the word go and is not one to miss a trick. "We had an edge over India in the first Test and it's always hard to come back after losing a Test match. But that's why you play Test cricket - because of the challenge. It's now upto the Indians to fight back," said Waugh, putting the ball back in the Indian court. More than putting the ball in the Indians' court, what Steve Waugh has done is needled Ganguly. In the past, the Indian skipper has taken the bait, responded with words and come a cropper out in the middle. If he has learnt from his mistake, this Test match will last longer than the last one did.