When the coin is tossed on Sunday to commence the India-Australia series, there would be a bunch of players on the sidelines with their hearts in their mouths. The pacers on both sides will be hoping for two things: that their captain gets the heads-or-tails dilemma right and follows up that initial success by uttering those much-anticipated four words, ‘we will bowl first’.

The seats at the impressive stadium in Vadodara have been diligently numbered and a heavy police presence promises that those with a valid ticket won’t have to deal with encroachers even if they turn up late, but rules on the other side of the boundary are different. Anybody with a passing interest in cricket around here knows that the 22 yards in the centre has adhered to the ‘first come, first served’ policy for long.

The overtly green surroundings at the IPCL Stadium ensure a short-lived sprinkle of dew and that’s the ideal time to run in fast and make the best use of the conditions. But soon as the mercury reading rises, the dew disappears and so does the purple patch for the pacers. After the pacers gradually drift to the background, the spotlight stays on the batters all day.

Considering the short screen-time that the pacers get here, captains throw the ball to the impact bowlers in the hope that they make a lasting impression on the game. Locals here speak about how the pacers go all out in the first half an hour, aware that there will be no worms left in case they miss the chance to swoop in early.

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