The visitors may have lost the first Test in Delhi, but they have shown signs of progress under the steady if unspectacular leadership of Darren Sammy, and could have already recorded a shock win against an Indian side that – despite the 4-0 reverse against England – is packed full of talent.

In Delhi, Shivnarine Chanderpaul – the side’s undisputed lynchpin in the continued absence of Ramnaresh Sarwan and Chris Gayle – top-scored in both innings, and it is unsurprising that he is the favourite amongst Betfair punters to do the same in the West Indies first innings in Kolkata. A player who seldom gifts his wicket, the gritty left-hander has been a model of consistency for more than 15 years.

The Guyanese veteran aside, the visitor’s top seven lacks experience, but in Lara ‘play-alike’ Darren Bravo, the broad shouldered Kirk Edwards and the mercurial Marlon Samuels, the Windies’ middle-order isn’t short of talent.

Samuels, who has recently returned from a two-year ban is still finding his feet and – despite possessing a great eye and power by the bucketful – it is perhaps too early to say how much 24 months out of the game has affected the 30-year-old’s game.

Bravo, by contrast, is very much on the rise, and having registered seven scores of 50 or more in 20 innings (including his first Test match century last month), he has already displayed the sort of consistency that will tempt plenty of punters to part with a few pounds.

Perhaps the best value, however, can be found by backing Bajan Kirk Edwards at 6.4. Possessing a strong, simple technique and a calm temperament the number three has an enviable average of almost 60 (albeit from just eight innings) and having missed out in Delhi, he will be keen to make his mark this time around.

Youth or experience – what do you reckon?

There has been a long line of great left-handers produced by the West Indies over the years, from Sir Garfield Sobers and Clive Lloyd, through Alvin Kallicharran and Roy Fredericks, to the modern day icon, Brian Lara. And it is another southpaw that has provided the backbone to West Indian cricket in recent years, the diminutive Shivnarine Chanderpaul.

Chanderpaul was on display for Warwickshire during their vital County Championship victory over Nottinghamshire – who were fielding another West Indian left-hander in the form of Darren Bravo, one of the leading lights for the future of cricket in the Caribbean.

At the age of 37, Chanderpaul is the venerable old man of West Indian cricket, with a Test career that has spanned 17 years and a reputation as a dogged, committed accumulator who has so often been the last bastion between survival and obliteration for the West Indies. Bravo, 22, is yet to register an international century but is seen as the great hope, albeit in a region starved of success in recent times. He also reminds the West Indian public of the great Lara; batting like him, walking like him, and talking like him. They are even related – Bravo’s mother is the sister of Lara’s late father.

Everything that the young Bravo does, through to the smallest mannerisms, is a reflection of his hero Lara. Watching him score a stylish 70 at Edgbaston last week it was immediately clear he is a talented player; his technique is fairly straightforward – well, it is that of Lara – and he is a stylish strokemaker with nimble footwork against the spinners and the ability to accumulate runs on both sides of the wicket.

Lara’s technique was not perfect, very few are, but he possessed a magnificent eye and an ability to play the ball later than almost anyone to have played the game. This meant that even when caught out of position he was able to recover and infuriate opposition captains by manoeuvring the ball seemingly at will. But Lara was a unique phenomenon and Bravo must ensure he has the correct technique and attitude in place to make his own way in the game.

With six half-centuries in his first eight Tests the early signs are promising but at the risk of appearing a little harsh he needs to start converting those fifties if he is going to come even close to fulfilling the expectations that the West Indian public have of him. They too, however, would do well to remember that his name is Darren Michael Bravo, and not Brian Charles Lara.

Chanderpaul, meanwhile, continues to churn out score after score. There was a time when it was felt that he too was not doing justice to his talent and failing to convert enough of his starts into big scores. However, 23 Test centuries later, that criticism has been well and truly laid to rest.

His stint with Warwickshire has seen him hit three tons in five first-class games at the time of writing, and it has helped propel the Edgbaston side into pole position in the Championship race. Chanderpaul may not be as easy on the eye as Bravo’s idol Lara, but his career is a great example and lesson of the work and dedication required to be successful at the highest level. If Bravo is to create his own mark on the game he will have to demonstrate the substance to match his evident style, and in that category Chanderpaul may well be the greatest example of them all.

There was nothing overtly significant about Shivnarine Chanderpaul walking out to bat for Warwickshire in last Wednesday’s CB40 clash with Surrey at Edgbaston. After racking up a West Indian record of 133 Test Caps, the Guyanese left-hander has entered more significant and pressurised environments.

That said, it provided a significant point of reflection for me personally. First and foremost it was an addition to the long line of West Indian greats associated with Warwickshire County Cricket Club. The 1972 County Championship was won by a side containing Rohan Kanhai, Alvin Kallicharran, Deryck Murray and Lance Gibbs. It would be 1994 before the Bears tasted another title success, with a certain Brian Charles Lara as catalyst in chief.

Three of the five who most would consider to be Guyana’s greatest batsmen – the others being Clive Lloyd and Carl Hooper – have now worn the famous crest of the Bear and Ragged Staff, and their aren’t too many other counties with such a long association with a small corner of the Old Empire. I certainly consider myself fortunate to have seen these outstanding players represent the county of my birth.

However, it did lead me to thinking about the considerable changes in the game of cricket in recent years. In the case of Kanhai and Kallicharran, they represented the county for nine and 19 years respectively, while Chanderpaul’s stint will be for little more than a fortnight. The days of the ‘overseas pro’ are long behind us and have been replaced with the era of the ‘overseas star’, who comes in for the short period of time during which his country is not playing and, in many cases, his central contract permits.

I’m not saying that this is necessarily a bad thing, and it is reflective of an international calendar which now has the game played globally throughout the year as opposed to the old model which had the English summer, and everyone else playing during our winter. Supporters will now see up to four or five overseas players representing them in the course of any single summer, and while we are still privileged to see the world’s best, there is a part of me that regrets we no longer have the traditional overseas professionals and the positive impact they could have on the club.

Of course, the domestic game is currently under review by David Morgan and the ECB, but as we approach next weekend’s FL t20 Finals Day, my own opinion is that the game is in excellent shape in the UK. There are always improvements that can be made, but the upshot is that the current structure has produced a world-beating Test side and the counties are churning out players to challenge those currently in the side, and that is the most important thing you can ask of the county game.

The FL t20 competition is a fine example. Our domestic tournament is based largely upon homegrown players with a few international imports and we are regularly seeing good crowds and entertainment. Moreover, the tournament also provided the impetus for the likes of Michael Lumb and Craig Kieswetter to break into England’s World T20 winning side. Contrast that with the money spinning circus of the IPL, widely criticised in the wake of India’s shameful performance on this tour.