KOLKATA : Buoyant India will hope to dominate the West Indies again with
spin as they bid to secure a series-clinching win in the second Test
starting at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Monday.The latest
spin duo of Ravichandran Ashwin and Pragyan Ojha shared 16 wickets to
help India cruise to a five-wicket victory in the opening contest of the
three-match series in New Delhi on Wednesday Left-arm
spinner Ojha had a six-wicket haul in the first innings and debutant
off-spinner Ashwin also took six in the second innings on a low, slow
turning track to trouble the West Indies batsmen.The duo's
success came at the right time for India, who had been looking for
match-winning spinners after the retirement of Anil Kumble in 2008 and
Harbhajan Singh's recent slump in form.Ashwin, who replaced
Harbhajan, did not let the selectors down with match figures of 9-128,
the second-best haul by an Indian debutant after leg-spinner Narendra
Hirwani's 16-136 against the West Indies in 1988.Ashwin, who
is getting married on Sunday, was lauded by the legendary Indian
off-spinner Erapalli Prasanna for his disciplined performance which
earned him the man-of-the-match award."I am impressed with
the way Ashwin bowled in the first Test," said Prasanna. "His line and
length was impeccable, his basics were right and he used his height well
to generate spin.The Eden Gardens wicket has traditionally
helped spin and it is unlikely to be any different this time, leaving
the tourists with a tough task if they are to bounce back in the series.India
also batted well in the second innings in New Delhi when they
comfortably chased a challenging 276-run target on the difficult pitch.Batting
superstar Sachin Tendulkar, who is on the verge of an unprecedented
100th international century, showed the way with a solid 76 before
Venkatsai Laxman completed the win with an unbeaten half-century.Opener
Virender Sehwag provided brisk starts with Gautam Gambhir in both the
innings with a pair of half-centuries, while veteran Rahul Dravid
cracked a fighting 54 in the first innings
