Raina blames it on poor shot selection

West Indies bowled a fair deal of short-pitched deliveries but bowling coach Eric Simons, wasn’t ready to concede that it had softened up his batsmen.

“I don’t think short-pitched bowling is any issue with this team. It’s not as if we lost only because we were softened up (by them),” he said.

“Sometimes when a series is lost and there is not much to play for, a team is more relaxed and they tend to do well which is exactly what West Indies did.”

“That could be one of the reasons that they played with greater freedom… They did well on Tuesday,” Simons explained.

He added: “We have done really well in this series, and our clinching this series is a reflection of that. Whenever we play for the country, there is a lot to play for and these players have responded well,” Simons said, counting on the positives. 

Simons also mentioned how the policy of this team has been to play to its strength, especially when it comes to bowling.

“We play with a plan which suits our bowlers. There is no point in trying to be someone else. We play to our strength; try to put pressure from both ends and develop a momentum for the side.”

Simons defended Ishant Sharma who proved expensive on Monday. “He has been bowling in the right areas and has been focussed at the nets. He has come following a strong IPL showing. I thought he bowled well.” 

Incidentally, the 103-run win is West Indies’ third-highest margin of victory over India in ODIs. The highest is the 135-run win in Vijayawada in 2002.