After having lost to Australia from a winning position in the opening match of the VB Tri-series, India skipper Sourav Ganguly is counting on his tailenders to put up an inspired batting display in Wednesday's match against Zimbabwe in Hobart.

The performance of the lower-order batsmen, who have failed to contribute much, has been a worrying factor for the Indians right through the tour and Ganguly has already made it clear that they need to show more character.

The Indians lost their last six wickets for just 13 runs in the opening match of the tournament against Australia to blow away a winning opportunity at Melbourne. After being comfortably placed at 257 for four at one stage they lost the game by 18 runs.

Ganguly was livid with the pathetic batting display and the team will be determined to make amends against a team that does not have enough firepower to counter the Indians.

The Indian top order has been firing on all cylinders and can definitely gain a lot if the tailenders also chip in with some runs.

The Indians are expected to bring in left-handed batsman Hemang Badani in place of utility player Sanjay Bangar, who failed to make much of an impression in the first match at Melbourne.

They are hoping to cash in on a flat batting track at the Bellerive Oval that may, however, provide some assistance to the bowlers in the early stages of the game.

The mighty Indian batting will be eager to roll against the African minnows, who, despite their heroic performance against Australia at Sydney on Sunday, do not have the quality bowling to test arguably the world's best line-up.

The top five Indian batsmen, who excelled against Australia in the recent Test series, will be relishing the prospect of facing Zimbabwe even though the latter possess the best fielding unit in the competition.

Badani is likely to come at number six and is seen as a better bet than Bangar because of his wristy strokeplay, not to forget his usefulness as a left-arm spinner.

The Indians will look to bat at full throttle to make up for some conspicuous weaknesses in their bowling and fielding departments.

They will again go in with a largely lightweight bowling attack since neither Laxmipathy Balaji nor Irfan Pathan are yet to tune-in to the demands of one-day cricket.

The fifth bowler worries are also present for India and Ganguly, Virender Sehwag, Sachin Tendulkar and, maybe, Badani will be asked to fill in.

The Indians could also be exposed in the field by the Zimbabweans, considering how badly they fielded in the first game at Melbourne.

Zimbabwe are not exactly downcast after their debacle at Sydney, because they know they were able to restrict the mighty Australians. If their batting comes up to expectations, they could prove a match for the Indians.

Visu Sibanda is a young opener who draws much praise from his captain Heath Streak, but with only six internationals behind him, the 20-year-old faces a daunting task tomorrow.

Stuart Matsikenyeri is another 20-year-old who made his international debut last season and his poor returns of 102 runs from 14 matches is understandable.

Mark Vermuelen is seen as a batsman of immense potential and at 24 years, with 16 one-dayers behind him, has a bit of experience behind him. He is still quite raw and has a highest of 79 in his turn-outs.

Otherwise, the Zimbabwean line-up is quite solid with Grant Flower, Stuart Carlisle, Sean Ervine, Heath Streak, Andy Blignaut and Tatinda Taibu all capable of striking big blows.

Australia are on top of the chart with two wins from two games while India and Zimbabwe, the other two teams in the competition, are still looking for victory.