It is always disappointing to end up on the losing side and more so when you have scored your maiden ODI hundred – which also happened to be the fastest century by a batsman from your country. After pulling off an improbable win with an unbeaten 64 at Mohali, James Faulkner was hoping to pull off a similar feat as he scored a brilliant 116 and kept Australia’s hopes alive as they chased 384 against India at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium.

Coming in to bat at No.7, Faulkner was involved in a 67-run stand with Shane Watson and later a 115-run partnership with Clint McKay as he countered the Indian bowling attack and was the last man to depart. He earned high praise from the Australia captain, George Bailey, for his sparkling innings. “It was pretty extraordinary. I don't want to sound biased, (because) I have played a lot with Jimmy, but I just can't speak highly enough of him. I don't know how many games he's played of one-day cricket, but he almost leads our bowling attack. He bowls in powerplays. He bowls at the start. He bowls at the death. He loves that responsibility. I think we've just seen him come into his own with the bat as well with a bit of confidence. Teams will certainly fear him. It's just that energy he brings is wonderful. The competitiveness he brings is something you love playing with. He's got a pretty bright future,” he told the media.

While speaking to bcci.tv later, Faulkner expressed his regret that his knock didn’t come in a winning cause and said that they would have done things differently if they had to do it again. He also lauded Rohit Sharma and the Indian team for their efforts.

Excerpts from his interview:

What was the plan and what was going through your mind as you fought and had a go at the target?

It’s a funny game really, with so many runs scored the whole series. I thought we had a massive chance at the end there. Clint McKay got a very good ball from (Ravindra) Jadeja that upset the party. But if we had that chase again, we would make sure we still had wickets in hand. And with wickets in hand you can chase down totals on these grounds in India. That’s not what happened today; we didn’t have wickets in the bank. And Rohit batted exceptionally well to score a double-hundred. So hats off to him.

How has playing Twenty20 changed batsmen’s mentality while chasing?

There are obviously a lot more fours and sixes scored now all around the wicket. No matter where you pitch the ball, you can hit it; all the good players can do that. It is about trying to restrict as much as you can. And now there are only four outside the circle, and mostly however you bowl, the batsman pretty much knows what is coming and so you can’t really second guess them or bluff them. It is about trying and executing.

Are the batsmen a lot more confident now?

I suppose so. They try and bat as normally as they can till the 35-over mark and then try and play like it is a Twenty20 game. If you have wickets in hand with four fielders out and a quick outfield, you should be able to post good scores.

They got a few more runs than we would have liked today. There was some serious striking.

You hit your maiden ODI century and that too under trying circumstances. How do you rate the knock?

To be honest, I suppose it was a pretty good knock. But I play cricket to win and be a part of the team and I am pretty excited with the way the Australian team is playing and I am sure that we are going to improve. We are a young group and the future is very bright.

What is your role in the ODI team?

My role was pretty clear. I bowl a couple of overs in the first 10 overs and then the powerplay comes and at most times I bowl in the powerplay and then in the death overs. I try and get curb the run-rate and if I take a wicket here or there, that is obviously a bonus. But to be honest, as long as the team wins, that’s what I am after.

Batting role: It just depends on the situation. You just got to rise to the situation and rotate the strike. That’s all fun and that is how we play the game, I suppose.

What do you take back from the series?

We take a lot of confidence. We were really challenged here and we made 300-odd every time we batted, except one game (in Ranchi) where we made 295. So that’s a great achievement.

India has gone past both big totals and chased down 360 and 351 – those were remarkable chases. Hats off to India; they deserve to win the series. But then again, it was a very tight one.

Glenn Maxwell played a good knock to keep Australia in the game. Your thoughts on his batting

He is batting with a lot of confidence. He is hitting the ball in the middle of the bat. He is a good talent and a good prospect for Australian cricket, and hopefully he will continue to improve. And next time we can be on the winning side.