Tony Becca, Columnist

THE TEST series between the West Indies and Pakistan is under way and, according to the experts, and according to Windies captain Brian Lara, for once a contest that usually brings together great fast bowlers, a contest that oftentimes is determined by speed, could be decided by spin.

With only one spin bowler of class, legspinner Danish Kaneria, in both teams, the reason for the belief that spin will dominate is not because of the presence of quality spin bowlers in both teams. It is simply because of the lack of quality fast bowlers on either side.

Once blessed with fast bowlers like Andy Roberts, Joel Garner, Colin Croft and Malcolm Marshall, Courtney Walsh and Curtly Ambrose, the West Indies are short of outstanding fast bowlers.

Pakistan, who once paraded the likes of Wasim Akram, Waqar Younis and Imran Khan, are also short of quality pace bowlers and there are two different reasons why the two teams are short of quality going into the contest.

Not ready to fire

For the West Indies, the reason is that although they have been coming along nicely, even though they could surprise, and especially so Fidel Edwards and Jerome Taylor, their youngsters are not yet fully developed and ready to fire.

Although I believe that with a level of consistency they can make life difficult for them, the consensus is that they are not ready to take on the likes of Inzamam-ul-Haq, Younis Khan and Mohammed Yousuf on the batsmen-friendly pitches of Pakistan.

For Pakistan, however, it is not that they do not possess bowlers of quality. It is that speed merchant Shoaib Akhtar and the skilled Mohammed Asif are under suspension and, depending on the outcome of their appeal, may not be available for a long time.

Both players, Shoaib for two years and Mohammed for one year, were banned when they tested positive for the drug nandrolone during an internal drug test conducted by the Pakistan Cricket Board just before the start of the ICC Champions Trophy in India last month.

They were sent home, they both refused to do a second test, they were tried by a three-member panel set up by the PCB, they were found guilty, they were sentenced and they have now appealed.

According to Shoaib, maybe the excessive nandrolone found in his body came from medication he was taking or had taken. He has had dozens of operations, he has taken hundreds of medicines to heal up his injuries, he is not a doctor, he does not know much about medicines, nutritional supplements like Promax-50 and Nitron-5 are not banned, and he does not know if they have produced nandrolone in his body.

According to Shoaib, there are certain herbal medicines which are not banned, he has been taking them on the advice of his doctor, and he told the tribunal that they (the World Anti-Doping Agency) should ban the supplements before they ban him.

Is Shoaib telling the truth? Only time will tell.

What is interesting, however, is this: why did he and Mohammed Asif refuse to do the second test?

Deserves applause

Whatever the outcome of the appeal which will be heard by Justice Fakhruddin Inrahim, former Test player Haseeb Ahsan and doping expert Dr. Danish Zaheer, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) deserves a round of applause from all those who believe that drugs have no place in sport and are prepared to do something about it - even if it means weakening their own team.

The drug situation in cricket is almost a farce, some of the countries playing cricket do not even know about WADA or what WADA stands for. Most of them they have never ever tested anyone.

Those who have, keep the results as a secret, and congratulations to Pakistan for testing their players and after finding two of them guilty - two of their best players at that - for sending them home, for trying them and then for suspending them, not for a match or two, but for one year and for two years after they were found guilty.

As so many cricket boards did during the match-fixing scandal a few years ago when fingers were pointed at their players and when so many moved to protect their players, the PCB could have turned a blind eye and allowed Shoaib and Mohammed Asif to play in the ICC Champions Trophy and then against the West Indies.

Chances are no-one would have been the wiser.

According to Intikhab Alam, a former captain of Pakistan and a member of the panel, Pakistan had to do what they did in order to set an example for the young cricketers in Pakistan.

"It's sad that it happened," said Intikhab, "but now the youngsters coming up will be very, very careful. We had to set an example."