Mitchell Marsh variations were spot on: Steve Smith

Mumbai: Australian skipper Steve Smith praised teammate Mitchell Marsh for his match-winning exploits in the tri-nation final against West Indies at Kensington Oval on Sunday.

Australia beat the hosts by 58 runs with Marsh finishing with figures of 3/32 along with a handy 32 with the bat which helped Australia reach 270/9.

Marsh’s variation with the ball stunned Smith.

“There was a patch of grass where the ball was doing a few different things. We wanted the right-armers to hit that back of a length, try and get the ball to react differently and I thought the way Mitchell used his variations today was spot on," the 27-year-old told cricket.com.au.

"He hit a beautiful area and let the ball do its thing. He got the ball through at quite good pace at times as well so it was nice to see him in good rhythm," Smith, who fell just four runs short of his half-century, added.

The skipper asserted that Marsh grew with time and the tri-series was an eye-opener for the all-rounder.

“I guess he is going to gain lot more confidence from what he did the other day and today,” the report added.

Australia elected to bat first and rode on Mathew Wade (57) and Aaron Finch (47). West Indies were all out for 212 within 45.5 overs. Johnson Charles (45) and Denesh Ramdin (40) were the only batsmen who showed a bit of resistance.

Josh Hazlewood picked up five wickets and was adjudged ‘man of the series’ while Marsh won the ‘man of the match’ award.