Will Lara play against India?

There is still a cloud over Brian Lara's availability for Thursday's Champions Trophy match against India, at the Sardar Patel stadium, in Motera, Ahmedabad.

The West Indies' captain had back spasms during his knock of 71 in Mumbai last week and did not take the field at all during the Australia innings. Ramnaresh Sarwan was the stand-in captain and led the team to a 10-run victory.

"Brian is continuing to receive treatment as the past few days," West Indies media manager Imran Khan said.

"I cannot say how he is feeling right now and if he will play or not on Thursday."

Lara was put through gentle throw-downs during the West Indies' practice session on Tuesday and is likely to bat in the nets on Wednesday.

Team India, meanwhile, had a relaxed net session that focused mainly on fielding.

Apart from slip catching and honing skills for high catches, the team was made to work on throwing at the stumps. Greg Chappell threw down the balls and the fielders were made to aim at three stump-positions: one, from about five yards into Chappell's wicket-keeping gloves; two, more than 22 yards, aiming straight at the wickets and three, (substituted with a plastic bottle) from side-on aiming at one stump.

The hyper Mohammed Kaif was the most successful in the exercise, while Sachin Tendulkar threw his arms up with joy every time he was on target.

Harbhajan Singh missed the nets due to stiffness and opted for a massage.

The bowlers had an easy day, with only Munaf Patel and R P Singh going through the paces in the nets.

Irfan Pathan, who bowled well against England in India's opening match after a lean patch with the ball, preferred to sharpen his batting skills, with bio-mechanist Ian Frazer bowling to him.

Tendulkar, Dravid and Virender Sehwag also opted for gentle knocks in the outfield in front of an admiring crowd, which had gathered around the small Ground 'B' of the stadium.

But it was the middle-order batsmen -- Yuvraj Singh, Mohammed Kaif and Suresh Raina -- who were given ample time in the nets to get back in touch.