Sachin Tendulkar during a practice session, on Monday

Mumbai: The stage couldn’t have been more perfect for Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar.

Starting as a ball boy in the India-England semi-final of the 1987 World Cup at the Wankhede to winning his first World Cup here, 21 years after his debut on April 2 this year. The script would have given Alfred Hitchcock a run for his money.

And perhaps, life will complete a full circle if the Master scores the much-coveted 100th international century here.

From the security guards to the MCA officials, from the scribes to the little kids who had come to catch a glimpse of their God... everyone at the Wankhede is eagerly waiting for the Master to deliver his magic when India take on the West Indies in the third and final Test on Tuesday.

But Sachin himself remains unaffected. After a prolonged practice session, he was happy to oblige the odd requests for photographs from his fans. But if his extended net session has anything to convey, he is very much determined to make this Test a memorable one.

Ironically, Sachin has only one Test hundred at the Wankhede. Way back in December 1997, against Sri Lanka, he scored 148. After that, the venue strangely hasn’t been a very happy hunting ground for him. a century in this Test can be a good way to make amends.

Amidst the buzz surrounding the Master, captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s absence from practice on Monday raised eyebrows. V.V.S. Laxman, at the pre-match press conference, added fuel to the speculation saying, “Dhoni told the physio in the morning that he was not feeling well.”

Though till late on Monday there was no official word on Dhoni, a member of the team management did say unofficially that Dhoni would ‘definitely’ play the match.

On the other hand, for the visitors, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, like Sunday, opted to give the training session a miss. The veteran southpaw is nursing a calf muscle injury he had suffered during the second Test at Eden Gardens.

However, West Indies team management will wait till the last moment before taking any decision on him. After all, he is the only experienced batsman they have in their ranks.

The series is as good as over for them as India have taken an unassailable 2-0 lead. And till now, it has been pretty much a one-sided affair with both the Tests getting over in less that four days. But nobody seemed to be bothered about the series when the prospect of 100th century looms large.

Meanwhile, Test cricket is returning to the Wankhede after five and half years. The last Test that was played here was between India and England in March 2006. India lost the match and that too pretty badly. They were bundled out for 100 in the second innings on a typical Wankhede dustbowl.

But much has changed since. The entire stadium has been renovated. The pitch is also new. No more a spinning track... The pitch is hard and bouncy and expected to encourage the fast bowlers.

With pacers like Fidel Edwards, Ravi Rampaul and Kemar Roach in the ranks, West Indies skipper Darren Sammy has reasons to be excited.

“For the first time in the series, we have got a pitch which will help fast bowlers. It’s a very good wicket. It has something for everybody,” he said.

However, Kemar Roach is likely to make way for Ravi Rampaul in the playing XI.

With Umesh Yadav and Ishant Sharma bowling at around 140 km per hour regularly, India will fancy their chances with the new ball as well. In fact, hardness of the pitch will also help tall off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin.

Harder pitch also means scope for better stroke-play. With the form Rahul Dravid & Laxman are in, it can actually be a very engaging battle, something which has been missing till now.

In fact, Laxman expressed his desire to get his first hundred at the Wankhede in this match. “Wankhede is a special place. It will be great to get my first hundred here in this match,” he said.

With Yuvraj Singh getting the axe, there’s a chance for the youngsters like Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma. A prolonged session for Kohli at nets with Rohit getting to do only a bit of customary knocking means Rohit’s Test debut will have to wait for the moment.

The West Indies will certainly come out strong after excellent fight back in the second innings of the Eden Test, especially the way Darren Bravo and Marlon Samuels batted. But even an ardent West Indian fan wouldn’t be dreaming of a victory.

After all, at the moment, everything else seems to be secondary other than the century of centuries.

TEAMS

India (likely): Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar, V.V.S. Laxman, Virat Kohli, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ishant Sharma, Pragyan Ojha, Umesh Yadav.

West Indies (likely): Adrian Barath, Kraigg Brathwaite, Kirk Edwards, Darren Bravo, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Marlon Samuels, Darren Sammy, Carlton Baugh, Ravi Rampaul, Fidel Edwards, Devendra Bishoo.

Umpires: Tony Hill, Bruce Oxenford.

TV: Shavir Tarapore.

Match Referee: David Boon

Match starts: 9.30 am