Stand-in skipper Virat Kohli said he was forced to keep an attacking field against the West Indies in Sunday’s tri-series match as he needed wickets to defend a modest score of 230 at Sabina Park.
Having to lead the side after regular captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni suffered cramps while batting, the 24-year-old said it was a good experience.
"I have captained in the IPL, but that's a Twenty20 game. This was totally unexpected. It was more thinking on the feet. It was a good experience for me. I had to keep attacking fields throughout the game because we needed wickets," he added.
Chasing 230, the West Indies rode on Johnson Charles's 97 to win the match with 14 balls to spare.
Kohli heaped praise on the young batsman.
"He is someone who's done well for the West Indies. It's a good thing for them. It's good to see a young player from West Indies coming through and playing a match-winning knock. We were putting pressure on him and he really stood up," said the Delhi batsman.
Defending the modest total, India’s bowlers did well to trigger a mini-collapse, which left the West Indies struggling at 212 for eight after 41 overs.
Kohli then made a surprise decision by bringing in part-timer Suresh Raina and the off-spinner didn't disappoint as he snapped Sunil Narine's wicket in his second over.
"(Sunil) Narine was batting and I thought Raina is good to left-handers and when he bowls around the wicket, he sort of skids it on. I thought he might hit the pad or force them on to the front foot," he said.
However, No 9 batsman Kemar Roach dashed India's hopes as he kept his cool to score 14 crucial runs and take the West Indies home.
The close one-wicket loss snapped India's nine-match winning streak but Kohli took the defeat in his stride, saying it is not possible to win everyday.
"You can't be too disappointed with these kinds of games," said Kohli.
"We won seven in a row in England (Champions Trophy, including the two warm-ups against Sri Lanka and Australia) and in cricket, you can't win everything. The way the guys fought was very pleasing to see. Everyone was hungry to win," he added.
