India's Abhishek Sharma (R) looks on as West Indies Shamar Springer (L) celebrates after taking his wicket during the third T20 international cricket match between India and West Indies (Photo: AFP)

Indore: West Indies all-rounder Shamar Springer said his team's "Plan B" was to be as defensive as possible against on-song India opener Abhishek Sharma but his early onslaught gave the home team enough cushion to "stifle" the visitors for a 14-run win in the third T20 International here. Abhishek smacked six fours and five sixes to notch up his 14th half-century -- 69 off 30 balls -- while becoming the fastest-ever in terms of balls faced to complete 2,000 T20I runs.

His 108-run stand with Ishan Kishan (37) for the second wicket helped India post 223 and eventually win by 14 runs for a 2-1 lead in the five-match series here.

"He is a world-class player. Kudos to him, for sure. But I guess our plan B is to just be as defensive as possible and try to make him get singles and twos, running at moments. Nothing too extravagant," Springer told reporters after the match when asked what their Plan B was, given that Abhishek had done well against Roston Chase's off-spin initially.

"It was just a matter of trying to pull him back and be as impressive as possible. Because there's not much control you can really have here. The wickets are so good and those players are world-class players and they're the best for a reason. So, it's not really much you can really do besides be defensive," he added.

Springer said the West Indies thought the target of 224 was chase-able and they could have taken the game closer. Springer smacked four sixes and two fours to make 35 not out off only 11 balls, but the West Indies finished with 209 for seven in reply.

"I guess we missed out on a few balls. Still, kudos to the (Indian) bowlers. They actually did pretty well. But there were a few balls that we could have put away and maybe brought the game a little closer," he said.

"They kind of stifled us and left us with too much (many) runs down the end. We thought the wicket would play a little better. The ball kept a bit lower than we expected. Also, we thought there would be some dew in the second half but there wasn't really any dew.

"The nature of the wicket was a little low, and the Indian bowlers used the wicket a lot better," Springer added.

Springer rejected suggestions that skipper Shai Hope's early dismissal for five had a cascading effect on the West Indies' batting.

"I don't think so. We have great depth. We are back in the middle. Today wasn't as good. It was an opportunity for someone else to step up. I mean, we fell short by 14 runs. In the middle period and powerplay, if we had got six more runs in either phase, we probably could have got over it," Springer said.

The 28-year-old said doing well in Indian conditions could help attract the attention of T20 leagues, but that is not a primary goal of the players.

"It's secondary. Obviously, the goal is to win. But a by-product of doing well against India naturally would put some spotlight on you. That's not the goal per se. It's just a matter of doing well, and then that will take care of itself," he said.

Springer also termed Chase's bowling performances against India as "underrated." The right-arm spinner has taken six wickets in three matches so far.

"For sure, he has been underrated so far. But in our dressing room, we really appreciate what he does. He brings that control and calmness to our team. He is the x-factor so far," he said.

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