In all, 17 wickets fell on the final day, at the end of which India, chasing 243 for victory, finished on 242 for nine. “The effort was good,” said the West Indian captain, who could not bowl due to a sore hamstring. “But we were definitely looking for a win, playing a higher rung team. The guys did not bat well, but the bowlers did well. Bishoo on one leg bowled 50 overs, Samuels bowled almost 30 overs on the trot, Rampaul and Fidel bowled very well. We really showed a lot of fight, that is a positive from this series. The way we kept our head up when we were down was heartening, I see the West Indies doing hard and constant improvement.”

Throwing light on the morning collapse, he admitted frankly, “I think we took the position for granted. Knowing that we scored 590 in the first innings, we relaxed a little. Some of the shots we played were not called for and we paid the price for it.

“There was a bit more bounce and turn than the previous four days, but nothing we should not be able to handle. But us losing all those wickets provided a great opportunity to win. In future, we would not want to win like that, we would like to bat properly in both innings of a Test match!”

Sammy acknowledged that the thought of a tie had gone through his mind towards the end. “All sorts of things were going through my mind, going down to the end,” he laughed. “At one point, the tied Test came in mind, but I was speaking to Kirk Edwards - win or draw, win or draw, we can't lose this. It shows that once you have the belief, there is a possibility of achieving that. The way we batted in the first innings, it would have been heartbreaking to lose that game.”