By IANS,
Sydney : Dwayne Bravo says his short stint with the Mumbai Indians in the inaugural Indian Premier League has helped West Indies to beat Australia in the Twenty20 international at Kensington Oval, Bridgetown, Barbados Friday.
Bravo, who led the West Indies in the absence of injured skipper Chris Gayle and his deputy Ramnaresh Sarwan, felt the same IPL has also worked to the Australians’ disadvantage.
With the Caribbean’s first Twenty20 international reduced to an 11-over-a-side slug-fest due to rain, Bravo was adamant his reconnaissance work on several key Australian players during the IPL was a factor behind the Windies’ seven-wicket victory, reports The Sydney Morning Herald.
Bravo played alongside Australian opener Luke Ronchi with the Mumbai Indians, and against Shane Watson (Rajasthan Royals) and Brett Lee (Kings XI Punjab), during his stint in India.
He claimed the knowledge gained from those matches shaped the Windies’ tactics on Friday.
“When Shane Watson came into bat, I had the field placings spot-on, I had the angles spot-on,” Bravo said. “(For) Luke Ronchi, I had it as well. He hit a six over cover, but because of the timing of the ball it could have gone straight to the fielder. The experience in the IPL helped me a lot and with my batting as well. When I went out to bat I knew not to put myself under any pressure. Once I bat to the end, we’re going to win the game.”
In reality, the role played by tactics in an 11-over-a-side contest — the shortest completed match in Twenty20 international history — would seem minimal, at best.
West Indies won the match with 11 balls to spare, Australia’s fifth defeat from their past eight Twenty20 internationals.
“That’s the shortest game of cricket I’ve ever played, no doubt,” Ricky Ponting said.
“Obviously the shorter the game goes, the bigger the difference a single over or shot makes.