India were caught out by a slow pitch, a disciplined West Indies bowling performance and maybe a bit of overconfidence in the fourth one-day international on Sunday. Virat Kohli's team cannot afford to be complacent in the 5th ODI, if they are to clinch the series.
As it stands, India lead the five-match series 2-1, with the first match going under the no result column and the final one to be played on Thursday in Jamaica. Considering West Indies were given no chance of even picking up a single win in this series, they have done well so far to notch that victory and keep the series alive.
A drawn series will be a pretty good achievement for this inexperienced West Indies ODI team, and will again put Kohli's side under the scanner.
After that Champions Trophy final defeat to Pakistan, a bit of lethargy has crept into this Indian side, but then that could also be due to the off-field problems that have cropped up and this series in the Caribbean, at the end of the day, being pretty pointless, as far as context is concerned.
Despite all those factors, though, India should really have won every single game that was played and Kohli will still be asking himself how his side managed to bungle a simple chase in the fourth ODI.
After the bowlers did a solid job of keeping West Indies to just 189, all money would have been on India to chase down the total with ease, particularly considering how well they have batted, even in trying conditions.
However, two of the top three fell early, Dinesh Karthik failed and with MS Dhoni struggling to fill that finisher's role on his own, India ended up falling well short of what was required.
The win would have given the West Indies a big boost, and the belief that they can beat this strong India team, as long as they keep putting the pressure on the visitors.
What needs to improve for the West Indies in the 5th ODI, however, is the batting. In three matches so far, the West Indies batting lineup have managed scores of 205/6, 158 all out and 189/9. That isn't great reading, and a couple of those innings were of the 80s era, where a run rate of around four was considered to be pretty great.
If the batting clicks – and all they need is a bit of confidence up front, a strong and fast start – there is a good chance of the West Indies finishing this ODI series against India at level pegging.
When and where to watch live
India vs West Indies 5th ODI match is set to begin at 9am local time, 7.30pm IST. TV and live streaming information is below.
India: TV: Ten 3, Ten 1 HD, Sony Six, Sony Six HD. Live Streaming: Sonyliv.
USA: TV: Willow TV. Live Streaming: Willow TV online.
UK: TV: Sky Sports 3. Live Streaming: Sky Sports Watch.
South Africa: TV: SuperSport Seven. Live Streaming: SuperSport Live Video.
