Brathwaite credits Indian pacers for West Indies' no-show

Kraigg Brathwaite, whose innings of 74 could not prevent a struggling West Indies batting unit from falling short of the follow-on mark on day three of the Antigua Test, praised India's bowling attack for the pressure they sustained through the day.

"I think I haven't seen any bowlers bowl so well in the early stage of the innings," Brathwaite said. "They bowled with a lot of discipline. They also set attacking fields and really backed it up with good disciplined bowling."

Replying to India's 566 for 8 declared, West Indies were bowled out for 243. Following on, they ended the day 21 for 1, with Brathwaite dismissed in the first over.

"It's a bit of both," he said, when asked whether West Indies' situation was more a reflection of poor batting or good bowling from India. "As a batsman, you have to know when you have to curb your aggression and defend, or when to attack. I think it's all about individual batsmanship as a whole. It's about having confidence in what you do and building partnerships and bat throughout the third day."

While there was no denying the uphill nature of the task West Indies face over the last two days of the match, Brathwaite said their batting line-up was capable of saving the game.

"We had just a bad day," he said. "We have some really good batsmen. Today it didn't go well but tomorrow we should come back and bat really well and put some runs on the board."

He expected the pitch to remain good to bat on and hold together on days four and five "Little bit of grass. I don't think it will crack up. The bounce is still good and we have to come tomorrow and see if it continues or if it gets low."