I Just Wanted To Bat To The End - Bravo

I Just Wanted To Bat To The End - Bravo

Darren Bravo's batting helped West Indies beat Zimbabwe 3-0 in their ODI series

©REUTERS / Action Images

West Indies batsman Darren Bravo played two match-defining innings during the One-Day International series against Zimbabwe and both set up victories.

In the opening match, his 71-ball unbeaten century laid the foundations for a 156-run win and in the final game his assured 72 not out took the West Indies over the line for a five-wicket win.

With Ramnaresh Sarwan also registering an unbeaten century in the middle game, a 3-0 series clean sweep was achieved, and Bravo says it was no accident that the batting performed when it mattered.

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"In our team meetings the coach always asks for someone to bat through the innings," he revealed. "Today was the ideal opportunity for me and I went out there with that one goal in mind.

"I just wanted to bat to the end and I knew if I was there at the end we would win the match and win the series 3-0," he told reporters following the game.

"In the first match I played really well and got my first hundred. In the second match Sarwan did the job by batting through to the end and he got a great hundred.

"Today we lost a few quick wickets and key wickets as well, so it was a matter of me buckling down and looking to take it all the way to the finish. It was good that I played that role today and will look to do it in games to come."

Bravo's innings in this series showed a level of composure and maturity that should stand a relatively young side in good stead in the future.

"After coming back from Australia, where we didn’t do very well, it was just a matter of me believing in myself and looking to make the most of the opportunities," Bravo said.

"I went out and backed myself and looked to execute the game plan. It was a matter of understanding the situation and doing what was required for the team. Zimbabwe played well - they never sat back and surrendered - so we had to make sure we played well and played smart against them."

© Cricket World 2013