http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Watson-c96326 disappointed in team despite victory – Cricket News Update
Despite their 30-run win in the last ODI of the 5-match series against the Windies, Australian stand-in skipper Shane Watson is not happy with the team’s 2-2 (5) series tie, describing their performances as “disappointing”.
“To tie the series, especially when in a number of those games we were at a stage where we should have buried the http://www.senore.com/Cricket/West-Indies-c760, it's probably very disappointing,” said Watson.
The 30-year-old, who is stepping in for regular skipper http://www.senore.com/Cricket/MJ-Clarke-c1978 as he recovers from a hamstring injury, lamented his side’s ineffective approach, saying they were not ruthless enough, and had pushed their opponents into a corner, only to allow them
to escape later on in the match – an instance which had occurred twice throughout the series.
“We're at a stage where things look like we're cruising okay and change quite quickly,” Watson said.
“That's happened since I've come back in the Australian team over the last 10 games. It's something we certainly need to work on,” he added.
The first match of the series culminated in a 64-run win for the Aussies, but the 2nd match resulted in a 5-wicket win for the hosts. The third game ended in a frustrating tie, owing to the visitors’ inability to maintain their ruthless approach.
After reducing the Windies to 117 for 6 in the 29th over, the Australian team loosened their hold and gave their opponents ample time to recover from the set-back, allowing them to end the match on a 220-run tie.
The same trend reoccurred in the last match of the series. With a chase of 282 in front of them, the hosts found themselves at 118 for 7 in the 32nd over, and http://www.senore.com/Cricket/DJG-Sammy-c1382
attempted a valiant comeback, smashing a career-best 84 off 50, and teaming up with http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Andre-Dwayne-Russell-c44235 (41) for a 101 off 59, 8th wicket partnership. However, the Aussies managed to recover in time and cut the home team off at 251 – 30 runs short of
the target.
Despite the close call, the tourists managed to avoid defeat and end the series on a tie. Furthermore, Watson is confident that the experience will prove to be a constructive one for his team.
“It's a big learning curve for us. We have to get better at those stages because that's where we are really going to grow as a team,” he said.
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