South Africa have taken a 2-1 lead over West Indies in the five-match T20I series and Caribbean vice-captain, Nicholas Pooran reckons his side should have found a way to win Tuesday’s third game.
In that match, the West Indies lost by one run.
Chasing 168 for the series lead despite being 52 without loss in the seventh over, the Windies ended on 166-7.
Even with 19 runs required in the final two overs, Pooran backed the hosts to get over the line but admitted South Africa bowled well.
“I was there until the second to last over with Fabian [Allen] and we should have found a way to win that game, no excuses,” he stated.
“Personally it is a tough question. I thought we came back into the game really good, with the ball especially chasing 160 or 160-odd. I felt we should have gotten over the line but having said that, I felt that South Africa bowled well as well, they bowled well in the middle, they bowled well in the last two overs of the game and I think that’s where they won the game,” Pooran reasoned.
The 25-year-old suggested that the team is still building and trying to bind as a team but is of the opinion that the performance was “not too bad” judging from the close nature of the loss.
Looking at the positives, Pooran was in awe of left-arm seamer, Obed McCoy who returned a career best of 4-22 in the third T20I. “Obed has been wonderful. He has come out in the three games so far and he has been consistent for us every time the captain asks for a wicket he comes and delivers. He is a young guy and it is really nice to see he is getting a little experience from the other guys as well so that is fantastic,” he said.
The wicketkeeper added, “Definitely our death bowling. We went death from the 10th to the 20th over so that is really good, positives in our game with the batting as well, we started really good in the powerplay as well.”
One of the key takeaways for the Guyana Amazon Warriors player was his side’s batting against spin in the middle period which is something that had been discussed extensively in the team meetings. Looking forward, Pooran reasoned that the team needs to stay optimistic and continue doing the little things right if they are to come out with a series win.
“It’s easy, just for the players to stay positive. It’s not like we are getting beat badly. We are playing really good cricket as well. Most of our players haven’t come trumps with the bat yet, that’s one thing to note. We just have to stay confident and positive and come out and execute our skills and ability and we will be fine,” he said.
