Bittersweet day for Strauss

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The Middlesex batsman, appointed one-day captain for this series, put down a personal marker to at least remain in the selectors' one-day plans with a superb 105 off 129 balls, but could not prevent England slipping to a 21-run defeat in the second encounter of the five-match series.

"It's frustrating because we had an opportunity to create some real momentum and, when you go 2-0 up in a five-match series, that takes some beating," conceded Strauss.

"At the halfway point we were very confident we could chase them down but that's the game of cricket and it's never as easy as you think it's going to be."

At least Strauss, ignored by the selectors in one-day cricket for two years until this tour, scored his first century since hitting 152 against Bangladesh at Trent Bridge in 2005.

He is aware the selectors are going to review the one-day captaincy at the end of this tour but believes it would be wrong to assume he will lead the team this summer because of yesterday's innings.

Asked whether his century had helped his captaincy ambitions, Strauss replied: "I don't know. Both the Twenty20 and one-day captaincy are being revisited at the end of this series so the selectors will have their views on that.

"It's good for me to show I've still got some form in one-day cricket but I think it's wrong to look too far ahead at this stage. Let's get the series over and done with and I think things will be clearer at the end of it."

The impressive innings, which was only overshadowed by Shivnarine Chanderpaul's match-winning 112 for West Indies, will at least have silenced the doubts that he cannot play international one-day cricket.

Strauss chose to bat as an opener for this series, and said: "I'm looking to play my natural game as much as possible and bat for 40-odd overs minimum - that's my role and we've got plenty of shot-makers around me."