The decision to hold the Irani Cup match in Baroda was thought to have been taken keeping the traditional green track here in mind. With India boasting of a sizeable pace attack that includes Zaheer Khan, Munaf Patel, Ishant Sharma and RP Singh and the batting order gearing up to face the likes of Brett Lee, Stuart Clark and Mitchell Johnson, the idea of playing here was promising. But the impression here is that of a flat track. “Badhiya pata wicket hai, Sehwag jaise player ke liye (It’s a superb flat track, just for the likes of Sehwag),” is the common statement. And according to Delhi coach Vijay Dahiya, “an ideal track for (his) batsmen.”

To expect the Indian top-order to practice batting on this track is intriguing, unless it’s been decided to go into the five-day game only for some good knocking. The Australians have arrived banking on pace and a lively track here would’ve certainly given confidence to Indian pacers as well. The runs coming out here could mean precious little, unless ‘flat’ turns out to be the keyword for the entire series.