There were instances when we put England under pressure: Andre Coley rues West Indies' 'unfair' 0-3 defeat

After being whitewashed in the three-match Test series against England last month, West Indies will be looking to bounce back in the upcoming two-Test home series against South Africa.

West Indies had some positive moments during the series but were thoroughly outplayed by England on most occasions. The hosts won the first Test at Lord's in just over two days, thrashing West Indies by an innings and 114 runs. West Indies' batters failed to do well in both the innings, scoring 121 and 136.

The tourists did better in the next two Tests but their efforts were still not enough to challenge England let alone beating them. West Indies lost the second Test by 241 runs. In the first innings, they scored 457 runs in reply to England's 416 but were all out for only 143 in the second innings. In the third and final Test, England registered another heavy win, defeating the Caribbean outfit by 10 wickets.

As West Indies look to bounce back from the heavy defeat in England, their head coach Andre Coley has said the 3-0 score was not an accurate reflection of their performance. Coley admitted that his team failed to get into the match in the series opener but did well in the next two games, highlighting that the batters needed some time to acclimatize.

"We were beaten at Lord's because we never actually got into that match. They were both low-scoring innings, so we never actually got in. With the ball, we did most of what we wanted to do," Coley was quoted as saying by ESPNcricinfo.

"From the second Test, you could see how the batters started to acclimatise and mixed intent with some really good decision-making. We started to see each player expressing themselves and announce what they are capable of doing," he added.

It was a matter of mental fatigue: Andre Coley

Speaking further, Coley said that while West Indies managed to put England's batsmen and bowlers under pressure on several occasions, they could not sustain the momentum for a longer period. He also shared the positives for the West Indies team from the series.

"When you sum up the entire series, emotionally or mentally, it was a bit draining. That's because of how England play and how attacking they would be. [But] there were instances where we controlled the flow of runs, where we put their batting under pressure, and where we put their bowling under pressure," said Coley.

"There were occasions where you watched the body language of England fielders and you could say they were feeling the pressure. But [for us] to be able to sustain that mental focus for three to four days and operate at maximum capacity was quite interesting and taxing.

It was a matter of mental fatigue, just being able to do some of the things we wanted to do for a longer time, especially when put under pressure, getting through those periods, then being put under pressure again, and then having to respond again. That's the biggest learning we could take away," he added.

Meanwhile, the two-match Test series between West Indies and South Africa is scheduled to get underway on August 7. The second game will be played from August 15.