Indore, Dec 8: Having registered their first win of a rather eventful tour, West Indies skipper Darren Sammy is looking to take the ODI series into a decider with another win against India when the two teams clash in Indore on Thursday. The visitors will, however, miss the services of in-form batsman Darren Bravo who has been ruled out of the fourth ODI due to a hamstring injury.

Excerpts from the pre-match press conference:

On the wicket

It looks like a good one-day wicket. I saw the papers in the morning and the curator has said it will be full of runs. Hopefully we can have another exciting game like the last [one].

On Darren Bravo’s fitness status

Darren Bravo is out for the next game but like we showed when Shiv [Shivnarine Chanderpaul] was unavailable during the Test series and the others chipped in, it will an opportunity for someone else to come out and make a name for himself.

On the mood in the camp after the victory in Ahmedabad

The morale of the team is always good. So far we’ve kept saying we have been coming closer, saying it’s about taking the opportunities and grabbing them and winning. Now that we have got a win, the morale will definitely go up more and we have to believe that we can win. It is an important game for us and hopefully we can win it and take it down to Chennai for the final.

On his 17-ball knock of 41 in Ahmedabad

More than personal satisfaction, the team winning is the most important thing for me. [It was] disappointing for me that we had a pretty good run but were not winning. Satisfaction is based on the team’s performance and going out and winning games. The knock was a crucial part of the game and that makes it special.

On whether India were looking too far ahead rather than focussing on the series

I don’t know what India have on their minds but we believe that we could win. So far in the series we have competed hard and we’ve had opportunities to win. We took the last one and we are looking to create another opportunity in the last two matches. So what the opposition thinks, that’s up to them.

On finishing the tour on a high

[There are] two games left and most of the guys have been away from home for almost two months now. We’ve got to finish on a high. It is the ultimate goal for us and now that we have had a piece of victory, we have seen when we keep applying pressure we could be successful. [The fourth ODI] is another game for us and there is no reason for not believing in ourselves […] You have to keep doing what you have been doing all the time and go out and execute.

On playing two spinners

Looking at the games, we feel that the bowlers who played did create an opportunity which is good to see […] Obviously it was very good to see [Sunil] Narine come good in his first one-day international. So far in the ODIs the pace bowlers have getting wickets for us, be it [Ravi] Rampaul or [Kemar] Roach. It’s not about playing two spinners; it’s about putting the ball in the right areas and executing properly.

On practicing the toss

[Dhoni] and I are often asked why we don’t win tosses; I never win the toss in cricket but we don’t have any explanation. When the coin goes up, you call heads or tail but unfortunately for me I don’t win the toss. Hopefully [in the fourth ODI] we could win the toss or we could lose [the toss] and still win [the game]. As long as we lose the toss and win [the match], it’s better than not winning at all.

On Ravi Rampaul

His nickname is ‘The Hawk’. Ravi is a lionheart in a hawk’s body. He hasn’t been able to play much due to injuries but he will definitely [play a lot] the way he is performing. The way he plays for the team and feels like taking the responsibility – he contributes a lot to the team’s cause […] He and Roach, if they stay injury-free, will contribute a lot to West Indies cricket and lead our bowling unit. He gets early wickets for us. I just wish him all the best and hope that he wins many games in the future.