An all-too-quiet party

The great thing about watching Test cricket is that while you may be watching the same game it is a dramatically different experience in every country. The bizarre thing here in the West Indies is that, in much the same way as India, you're in a place where the people are cricket mad and you talk to everyone about it and yet the grounds are half empty.

The big difference between here and India is that the Jamaicans are geared up to party. They have specific stands just for partying – although it's not as if the rest of the stadium is like a library. And they sell quarter bottles of rum. Hardly a responsible drinking policy. But there was no partying as the series kicked off; a just a fairly quiet stadium where everything on the pitch could be heard.

But the day warmed up. As the disparate elements of the Barmy Army found each other and the Jamaicans found their way into the ground after work the volume and fun factor rose. While the day's cricket was not exactly exciting and while the day in the crowd was not a classic, by the end of it you felt that this was a game and an atmosphere bubbling under and ready to go.

Let's hope so.