Indian captain Sourav Ganguly backed his bowlers and blamed the "placid Motera track" instead for his side's failure to force a win against New Zealand in the first cricket Test at Ahmedabad.

India, who had set a victory target of 370, failed to dismiss New Zealand in their second innings despite more than three sessions of play at hand as the Kiwis came up with a determined batting effort to salvage a draw on the fifth and final day.

"The bowlers did pretty well on a placid track. There was no turn to help the bowlers to pick wickets," Ganguly told reporters after the match.

The Indian captain was also full of praise for debutant pacer L Balaji who could manage only one wicket in the match.

"For a debutant, he bowled magnificently on a dead wicket which hardly had any movement in the air. It was a lion-hearted performance by the youngster."

Ganguly also dismissed the suggestion that his side was under pressure after failing to win the Test, seen as a grudge match after India's abject humiliation at the hands of the Kiwis in the two-Test away series late last year.

The second and final Test would be played at Mohali from Thursday.

"We are under no pressure absoultely. Mohali wicket is totally different and it always helps the seamers," he said.

"Now our aim is to play well at Mohali and win the series."

Ganguly declined to divulge his plans for the second Test though he hinted at including Ajit Agarkar, who made it to the side in place of an injured Avishkar Salvi, in the playing eleven.

"May be this is a blessing in disguise to have Agarkar in the side in place of an injured Salvi," he said.

"Our top batsmen are in fine form. But after taking a look at the wicket (in Mohali) we will decide whether to stick with four bowlers or go to the match with five."

When asked whether the Cricket Board should consult the captain and the coach before preparing wickets for international matches, Ganguly said "it is their discretion and I can't say much on that."

Fleming, for whom the Mohali match would offer another opportunity to fulfil the long cherished dream of winning a Test series on Indian soil, said his side was in with a chance on the fifth day of the match here.

"We were in with a chance in the morning with nine wickets in hand. But the situation changed drastically after I got out and (Nathan) Astle was down with fever and vomitting," Fleming said.

"I think we just got through in the end and forced a draw which itself was as good as winning."

On the match saving 103-run partnership for the seventh wicket between Astle and Craig McMillan, Fleming said it proved the class of the two batsmen.

"They are quality players with a lot of experience. Despite being short on match practice before we came here on the tour, they proved that they can produce the very best when the chips are down," Fleming said.

Coming together at the fall of Jacob Oram at 169 in the second session of play on the final day, the duo thwarted the Indian bowlers including spinners Anil Kumble and Harbhajan Singh for more than a session to coast their side to safety.

"We will be approaching the final Test with more confidence specially after our batsmen played the Indian spinners quite well," he said.

Indian vice-captain Rahul Dravid, who made his highest Test score of 222 in the first innings and followed it up with a quickfire 73 in the second to grab the man-of-the-match award, said a win would have been the icing on the cake for him.

"I am more than satisfied with my own innings. But would have been much happier had the side won the match," he said.