3 positives for the West Indies despite their Test series loss to India

Owing to a washed-out Day 5, the second Test between the West Indies and India in Trinidad ended in a stalemate. Team India, who won the opening Test in Dominica, secured a 1-0 Test series win.

It won't be an overstatement to say that the gulf between the two sides was quite big. While India looked at their dominating best, the hosts were always playing the catch-up game.

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The Rohit Sharma-led side won the first Test by a massive margin of an innings and 141 runs. In the next Test, they were on course to record a clean sweep before the rain came to the rescue for the Caribbean side.

Having said that, despite the West Indies' loss in the Test series, there were a few positives for them during the course of the series. Here are three of the main positives that the West Indies can take from their 1-0 Test series loss against India:

#1 Alick Athanaze

Alick Athanaze has got off to a steady start in his Test career [Getty Images]

West Indies handed a Test debut to one of their bright young talents in Alick Athanaze in the first Test against India. The talented left-hander made his debut on his home ground in Dominica and was quick to impress everyone with his great temperament.

Athanaze proved to be the sole silver lining for the hosts in the opening Test, as he batted with an assured approach and technique. On a surface where Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja made every Caribbean batter dance on their feet, Athanaze batted sensibly and played according to merit.

He top-scored for his team with a hard-fought 47 in his debut innings before looking good during his 44-ball 28 in the second inning as well.

Athanaze's right-arm off-spin proved to be the icing on the cake. When Rohit Sharma and Yashasvi Jaiswal tired out the Caribbean bowlers with their gigantic opening stand of 229 runs, Athanaze broke the deadlock when he dismissed the Indian captain.

While Athanaze still can't be considered more than a part-time tweaker, his batting credentials make him one to watch out for in the near future for the West Indies.

#2 Resistance shown by the batting group in the second Test

Kraigg Brathwaite and Tagenarine Chanderpaul [Getty Images]

The West Indies' batters looked clueless against the Indian bowling attack, especially Ravichandran Ashwin, in the Dominica Test. The hosts were bundled out for 150 and 130 across the two innings — their first-ever instance of not scoring over 300 runs across both innings of a Test against India.

However, it didn't prove to be as easy for the Indian bowlers to trouble the hosts in the second encounter. While it is true that the pitch in Trinidad didn't offer much for the bowlers, the fight shown by the West Indies shouldn't be ignored.

After India scored 438 runs in the first innings, the West Indies gave their best shot at taking the game deep. On the back of skipper Kraigg Brathwaite's valiant effort of 75 runs (from 235 balls), they batted for 115.4 overs — more overs than they batted in both combined innings in Dominica.

The Caribbean batters, especially their top order, showed great resistance and forced the Indian bowlers to rethink their plans. At one point, the West Indies' score read 178/3, and with their middle and lower orders contributing as well, there were all the chances for them to reach close to India's first-innings score.

Sadly for the hosts, Mohammed Siraj bowled an inspired spell on Day 4, as his five-wicket haul wreaked havoc against the lower order. This led the West Indies to score only 255 in their first innings.

While the West Indies were still considerably behind India in the game, the fight shown by their batters was certainly a positive takeaway for them going forward.

#3 West Indies' impactful bowling against the Indian top-order in the first innings in Trinidad

Jason Holder celebrating with his teammates [Getty Images]

The Indian batters found it almost plain sailing while tackling the Caribbean bowling across both Tests. However, during the second session of Day 1 in Trinidad, there was a brief stint when the Windies bowlers put the Indian batting unit on the defensive.

As soon as the West Indies broke the opening stand between Rohit Sharma and Yashasvi Jaiswal, they dominated the proceedings. The hosts got regular breakthroughs and offered their supporters something to cheer about.

Jaiswal's dismissal for 57 ended the opening stand worth 139, opening up an avenue for West Indies' comeback. Shubman Gill, who batted at No. 3, was caught behind. To add to India's problems, Rohit was bowled by a flighted delivery from Jomel Warrican which turned away a touch after being angled in.

The first hour after Lunch yielded just 33 runs for India off as many as 11 overs. West Indies were even more frugal in the hour before Tea, with Virat Kohli taking 21 deliveries to get off the mark.

The West Indies attack continued to put the halt to the Indian innings as they dismissed Ajinkya Rahane as well for only eight runs. From 139/0, the hosts reduced India to 182/4.

Unfortunately, this was the only moment in the Test where the Caribbean bowlers looked threatening, as Kohli's masterful century afterwards turned the match upside down.