West Indies all-rounder Darren Sammy has blamed the massive defeat to India in an ODI tri-series match here on the team’s lacklustre bowling, saying that it was only area where the hosts went wrong.
While lauding Indian skipper Virat Kohli, who struck a fine hundred to guide his team to 311 for seven, Sammy said his team’s bowlers leaked too many runs which proved costly.
“We have to give credit to Kohli and the Indians for the way they played. We did not bowl as well as we know we can,” Sammy said.
“That is one area where we went wrong today. India played really well. They knew they had to come hard at us, to get a win and stay in the tournament, and they did just that,” he added.
The Caribbeans lost match by 102 runs after their target was revised following a two-hour rain interruption.
“The way Kohli played just goes to show what can happen when a set batsman stays in to the end of the innings,” Sammy said.
“We had two very good innings in Jamaica when Chris (Gayle) got a hundred against Sri Lanka and (Johnson) Charles got 90 against India to win those two matches for us, but we did not get any real big partnerships going today,” he added.
West Indies, however, remain on top in the points table and a win over Sri Lanka on Sunday would take them to the final. Sammy said the home team just needs to remain confident about its abilities.
“We are still very much in the tournament. Today we lost but there is no need to panic,” Sammy said.
“We are still at the top of the points table and we have all to play for when we face Sri Lanka on Sunday. We still believe we can win this tournament. We will regroup and look to bounce back when we meet Sri Lanka on Sunday and look to move into the final,” he added.
