India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni was gutted after losing the first ODI against England in Rajkot, after they nearly chased down the 326 required and lost by nine runs in the end, saying his side should have won.

India looked on track to chase down the big score on the belter of a track, but while their batsmen got into the fifties more than once, they could not push on, and Dhoni felt that if he had stayed in the middle then they would have won.

The disappointed skipper, who made 32, said: "Frankly we should have got that - it was a very fast outfield. You got value for your shots and if you found the gaps more often it hit the boundary.

"I don't want to sound arrogant, but it was quite easy if me and (Suresh) Raina had stayed. I should have batted a few more overs and we would have got them.

"I think when me and Raina were batting we had a good chance, but once he got out followed by me it made it very difficult."

At the other end of the spectrum, England skipper Alastair Cook was obviously delighted with the win, saying it gave the side confidence after their previous series in India saw them destroyed 5-0.

The batsman said: "It is important, for the main reason that it gives us the confidence. I mean it's pretty much the same squad that we had last time out here when we lost 5-0.

"So to get an early win, especially in the first game, it proves to themselves that they can play in these conditions. You know it's hard, you know it's tough and it's different - but I thought the way we fought out there, we're going to have to do that again in the other games."

He then added: "I think we're still clear underdogs just because of the fact that this is India's home conditions and they're so strong at home."

The second ODI will be played in Kochi on 15 January.