All too easy for India in the decider
Against a moderate West Indies total and a mediocre West Indies attack, India ambled to victory on the back of another Shikhar Dhawan century
Against a moderate West Indies total and a mediocre West Indies attack, India ambled to victory on the back of another Shikhar Dhawan century
Scorer: Binoy George | Commentator: Abhishek Purohit
That is the end of India's home season. They go to South Africa, West Indies travel to New Zealand. Abhishek Purohit signing off. Goodbye.
Dhoni: "Once you win the toss and field, it is important to restrict the opponents. We bowled well, but were unlucky, some edges did not carry, there were lots of play-and-misses. 280 becomes quite a big score. I felt it was not a normal Kanpur wicket, it was much better to bat on. That is why 260 seemed just below a par score. If you compare the Australia series to the kind of death bowling we did today... even if we were missing the yorkers, it was not by much, they were ending up as low full tosses, that is a big improvement for us. Also the middle overs, the two spinners, and Raina, is a big positive. The openers gave a very good start, Virat has been in form, and we have finished well with the lower order."
Virat Kohli is the Man of the Series. Kohli: "Just trying to make the most of the sort of form I am in now. Trying to stay in the zone. Been coming off well, but the most important month for us is coming now in South Africa, so good to get a few runs before going there. I try to score as many as I can, staying in a nice happy space. We have scored a lot of runs, all of us that is why we are ODI No 1 right now. [South Africa] is a challenge, this team likes a challenge, I think we are good enough to stand up to it, and won't disappoint our fans."
Shikhar Dhawan is the Man of the Match. Dhawan: "It has been a great year for me. We usually play on these kind of tracks in Delhi and I am used to playing on them. I knew there would not be much bounce and the drives were on. Happy with my form, the team is doing great."
Dwayne Bravo: "We did very well [with the bat], Sammy played a fantastic innings, can't forget the innings of Samuels. We lost a few wickets. At 260, we should have given a better bowling effort. We did not start well [with the ball]. Simmons and I getting out at crucial times, we could have capitalised better. Chasing 280 instead of 260 could have been a different ball game."
Yuvraj: "I've been batting well but not getting enough runs. Shikhar was batting well so I thought I would spend some time in the middle. Wicket was a bit two paced at the start but it got easier as the game progressed. The runs are going to come, you have to make sure you are there at the tough times. Good to see Raina spending some time in the middle too. Virat and Rohit are doing very well. Very happy for Shikhar, he has scored lots of runs in domestic cricket, and has matured."
So West Indies much more competitive in the ODIs than they were in the Tests, but India winning in Kochi and Kanpur quite comfortably in the end. Importantly Yuvraj got some runs today, he scratched, he missed, he edged, but he also played some lovely shots, and didn't give it away
Santhana Krishnan: "One can say that the extra-ordinarily heavy dew was the only reason the West Indies won in Vizag. Otherwise it would have been a clean sweep for India."
Sagar: "Jadeja seems to be under the impression he's batting in the nets here."
The light's dropping in Kanpur now. Captains Bravo and Dhoni have a laugh about something
Keeper standing up
Plays of the Day from the third ODI between India and West Indies, in Kanpur
Against a moderate West Indies total and a mediocre West Indies attack, India ambled to victory on the back of another Shikhar Dhawan century
Dwayne Bravo, the West Indies captain, has said his team lost a great opportunity to win a series in India, having lost the Kanpur ODI by five wickets