Most teams in cricket are hard to beat on their home grounds.

When teams go to Australia or South Africa, they encounter hard and bouncy wickets exploited by menacing pacemen. In England and New Zealand, swing bowlers rule. Experience against chin-shattering fast men can be nerve wracking for batsmen from the sub-continent..

Pace bowling relies on a very limited time for a batsman to judge the ball and play it right. There is always the danger of getting hurt and few batsmen survive against good pace bowlers on fast tracks. I can bet a few Indian batsmen are going to return in stretchers after facing Shaun Tait. Hurting batsmen and psyching them with fast deliveries is as good as making them play with one hand tied behind a back. I do not call it a fair game, it is like putting nails in boxing gloves.

'The 1970s West Indies, despite having fearsome pacemen, feared and respected the Indian team for its strength in the spin department'

Pace bowling uses speed and intimidating tactics to unnerve batsmen. Once struck, many batsmen find it hard to recover. This is especially true for batsmen who develop their game on docile grounds facing limited pace bowling. The fast wickets in Australia and South Africa always generate a crop of excellent fast bowlers. Teams find it challenging to play their natural game. Sub-continent pace bowlers rarely make an impression on the Aussies and Springboks.

Sub-continent pitches support the plethora of spin bowlers. Batsmen use technique, footwork and artistry to play spin. Teams on the sub-continent should have a reserve of fast bowlers for their trips to countries like Australia and South Africa and to return the compliment when they host the southern hemisphere teams extreme spinning tracks should be unleashed.

Pakistan did that successfully against the Aussies. Abdul Qadir ran through their batting and clinched a 3-0 series win for Pakistan. India ran over Keith Fletcher's England team the same way.