India vs West Indies 2016: Carlos Brathwaite pays 'champion' tribute to Dwayne Bravo
West Indies T20 skipper Carlos Brathwaite thanked the senior players in the side for backing him in his first match as skipper of the T20 side and paid a glowing tribute to Dwayne Bravo, who was instrumental in their 1-run victory over India at Florida on Saturday.
Riding on a brilliant start by openers Ewin Lewis and Johnson Charles, the West Indies put on a daunting total of 245 batting first but still needed the services of Bravo who defended eight runs off the final over, including a final-ball dismissal of Indian skipper MS Dhoni, to hand his side a 1-0 lead in the series ahead of the second game on Sunday.
Having been appointed under acrimonious circumstances with World T20 winning captain Darren Sammy being informed that he was being removed from captaincy through a phone call, Brathwaite revealed that he faced no issues from the senior players in the squad and instead thanked them for providing valuable input in a match that created history as the T20 match with maximum number of runs being scored.
"I just want to publicly say thanks to all the senior guys for the help and support they give me on the field throughout the 20 overs," Brathwaite said after the win. "Everyone always has suggestions and it kind of eased my role as captain, as a new captain as well, to have such maturity and such experience on the field always lending a helping hand.”
The 28-year-old also revealed the conversation he had with Bravo ahead of the decisive final over claiming that he simply trusted his senior colleague’s thoughts though he wasn’t necessarily in agreement with his plans.
"Before the final ball, we were just fiddling with fields and wondering if to double-bluff or just try to stop the two. So Bravo finally decided and I asked him, 'What's your plan?' He said, 'A slower ball.' I didn't believe he'd bowl a slower ball but I told him, 'I'm backing you. Execute. Express yourself,' he said.
“I know he came out trumps for us once again and for how many ever years he's been doing it in T20 cricket for West Indies, once again he bowled a champion over, stuck to his guns and bowled a very, very top last delivery to one of the best finishers in world cricket," he added.
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Brathwaite is ecstatic that he got off to a winning start as skipper but is not resting on his laurels and is aiming for a victory later today as well which will see them overtake their opponents as the World’s No 2 T20 side.
"It's a relief. I always wanted to get that first one, that first win as captain," Brathwaite said. "I know it was a fantastic team effort by the boys. I think that was one of the better T20 games I've ever been a part of and it was a fantastic spectacle and I'm just happy that my first game could be memorable but most importantly that we came out on top."
"We became world champions and now we're here to defend that and show that we are number one in the world and show why we are," Brathwaite added. "The rankings say that we're number three and the plan is for us to go out tomorrow, give another big effort for the last, go 2-0 up, win the series and move to number two in the rankings."