Taylor key to hopes of victory

The West Indies captain Chris Gayle is convinced the form of fast bowler Jerome Taylor may be the deciding factor in the one-day series against India, which starts in Kingston today. Fellow fast bowler Fidel Edwards is out of the West Indies' 13-man squad with a back injury, and Gayle believes Taylor's performance with the new ball could be the key to toppling the Indian top order and preventing them from scoring big runs.

"I hope Jerome can be strong for us in this series. He has a big part to play," said Gayle. "It is never a walkover against India. There are a lot of guys there to give us a lot of trouble, so we just have to stick to the gameplan and make it a successful one." Taylor did acknowledge he is relieved to discover the opposition will be without Sachin Tendulkar and Virender Sehwag for the series. Tendulkar, along with Zaheer Khan, has been rested for the tour, which concludes on July 5, while Sehwag has been troubled by a shoulder injury and has not been risked for the four-match series.

"Tendulkar and Sehwag are world-class players, and their absence would ease the pressure somewhat," said Taylor. "But we won't take anything for granted. "We are going out there to give the best of ourselves and to make the Caribbean proud." India's selectors have made a raft of changes following the World Twenty20 disappointment - where they went out in the Super Eights - bringing in rookie Abhishek Nayar, Dinesh Karthik and Subramaniam Badrinath to the squad.

Left-arm seamer Ashish Nehra has also earned a recall after almost four years in the international wilderness. Today's opener in Jamaica is followed by a second ODI at the same ground two days later. The series then moves to St Lucia for two matches on July 3 and 5. * PA Sport