Following a dismal nine-wicket defeat to Australia in the first Test, West Indies Coach Phil Simmons said the team has moved on and is hoping to make amends in the two-match series.

The West Indies displayed their usual lacklustre batting performance in the first Test at Windsor Park, Roseau, Dominica last week. The Denesh Ramdin-led squad got bundled over for 148 and 216 in either innings, which left Australia to ease to victory inside three days.

But Simmons declared that the Caribbean side, which arrived in the island on Monday, will be looking to level the series when the second Test gets under way tomorrow at Sabina Park.

“Defeat is a defeat; we beat England in three days too and they went back and they won the next Test match. So it’s how you take it [and] I think the morale in the team has been great and the guys are looking forward to the next Test match.

“It is still an open series, it’s a two match series… it is not over yet and we are looking to draw the game in order to draw the series,” he told reporters at the team’s first training session at Sabina Park yesterday.

However, Simmons quickly pointed out that for the team to win, the batting and fielding performances will have to improve immensely.

“We just need to bat properly in the first innings; I think the first innings sets up everything [and] if we bat properly and we get to 350-400 runs in the first innings, we have seen that our bowlers can put people under pressure. But we need to take all our catches. I think that was one of the differences in the last game — Australia didn’t drop a catch and we dropped a couple of catches at crucial times, so those are the two things that we need to make sure we improve on,” he explained.

With the Sabina Park surface containing plenty of grass ahead of the game, the former West Indies pacer, who took over the helm earlier this year, was reluctant to give his thoughts.

“I will wait till the day before the game and then I can judge what the wicket is going to be like, because they would do more work on it between today (yesterday) and tomorrow (today). So tomorrow when we finish practice, I can see what it is like and then I can decide what we can get from this and what combination we have to play,” he said.

Simmons went on to applaud the ability of young wicketkeeper/batsman Shane Dorwich, who on debut contributed 70 in the second innings while partnering Marlon Samuels in a 144 fourth-wicket stand.

“He (Dorwich) has taken it very well; I think he has showed his ability in both innings and I hope that he can go further than he went in the last innings,” he noted.

Devendra Bishoo also came in for mention as his 6-80 in the first innings restricted Australia, and Simmons is optimistic that the form of the leg-spinner will continue through the series.

“I think he (Bishoo) has been bowling better and better as we go along; from the season he had 60-odd wickets, so he has been bowling well,” Simmons said.

And with the West Indies falling under heavy scrutiny following the heavy defeat, some planning to attend the match may not be so inclined, but Simmons urged fans to support the team through its rebuilding phase.

“It’s still the West Indies team that is playing and it’s a young team that is trying to get forward in Test cricket. We keep looking at things and saying that we don’t want to come because we lost the last match, but how many people came when we won the Test match before that? So you have to come out and support your team members,” he noted.

SQUAD: Denesh Ramdin (Captain), Devendra Bishoo, Jermaine Blackwood, Kraigg Brathwaite, Darren Bravo, Rajendra Chandrika, Shane Dowrich (wkt), Shannon Gabriel, Jason Holder, Shai Hope, Veerasammy Permaul, Kemar Roach, Marlon Samuels, Jerome Taylor.