Captain Rahul Dravid deflected questions about India's top order collapse, saying constantly changing conditions due to rain affected his side's rhythm in the tri-series match against Australia in Kuala Lumpur on Saturday.
"Because of rain and interruptions, it was difficult to keep rhythm in play. We felt we could have won," Dravid said, after India and Australia earned two points each from the rained out day-night encounter at the Kinrara Oval.
India seemed to have taken control of the match after restricting Australia to 244. But they slipped to 35 for five when set a revised target of 170 from 29 overs after a rain interruption. Pacer Mitchell Johnson caused the damage, claiming 4-11.
They were eventually saved by more rain that forced the match to be called off after eight overs.
Dravid said the batsmen could have done better but the rain made their task almost impossible.
"We probably rushed it a bit. Johnson bowled well but conditions favoured him," Dravid said.
"He had the new ball twice and placed the ball in the right areas. He could also seam well. Suddenly having a scoring rate of seven was not easy and playing the new ball was challenging.
"Moreover, every time you have to keep in mind the powerplay and how many overs are left, and also keep in mind the runs and the D/L (Duckworth/Lewis) formula.
"We could say we were relieved that we got away with two points. But we were disappointed that we did not get 50 overs. The rains made it tough, one can't do anything about it."
Dravid said the team is now at the mercy of the weather.
"One more washout and we will be out of the tournament. We are focussing on a good game of cricket. Hopefully we can get 100 overs of cricket."
He praised his bowlers for containing Australia to a modest total after they had got off to a strong start.
"The way we came back, Harbhajan Singh and Virender Sehwag controlled the middle overs well. Munaf Patel and R P Singh also bowled well," he said.
"We are bowling better (than in the match against the West Indies). It is critical to bowl well the first 20 overs.
"It is important for the seamers to give us a good start."
Dravid also defended Irfan Pathan who conceded 32 runs from his four overs in exchange for the wicket of rival captain Ricky Ponting.
"Irfan has struggled a bit. He was not able to bowl in the right areas... We want Irfan to bowl better. We have to nurse him through this period," the skipper said.
"He had bowled so well against Sri Lanka and Pakistan. He is trying hard. Hopefully, he will fight back."
He said Suresh Raina was chosen ahead of Mohammad Kaif, who had to make way for Yuvraj Singh, based on current form.
Australian skipper Ricky Ponting said India paid the price for not responding well to rapidly changing match situation.
"The rain was lucky for the Indians. I don't really know (how the match would have gone)," he said.
"When you have to get 170 in 29 overs, you have to have a different mindset. They played big shots and lost wickets."
