Suryakumar Yadav’s blistering half-century and fine cameo of unbeaten 33 by Rishabh Pant guided India to a seven-wicket win over West Indies in the third T20I of the five-match series at Warner Park, St Kitts on Tuesday (August 2). Chasing a target of 165, Men-in-Blue got off to a great start as their openers Rohit Sharma and Suryakumar Yadav started their game by playing aggressively.


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Rohit gave India a quick start but then retired hurt in the second over after seemingly pulling a muscle in his waist or side. Shreyas Iyer then came to bat on the crease and tried to anchor the innings with the opener Suryakumar. The star batter of India, Suryakumar brought up his half-century in 26 balls.


The duo stitched up the fine partnership and took their team’s total beyond the 100-run mark. The brilliant partnership did not last long as Iyer was dismissed by Akeal Hosein after scoring 24 runs in 27 balls. Iyer’s wicket invited Rishabh Pant to the crease to keep the momentum going in the favour of India. In the 14.3 over of the innings, Dominic Drakes gave his team a much-needed breakthrough as he dismissed well-set batter Suryakumar, who scored 76 runs in 44 deliveries.


WATCH highlights of Suryakumar Yadav’s brilliant 76 here…



Hardik Pandya then came to the crease but his stint was cut short as Jason Holder sent him back into the pavilion after scoring four runs. Deepak Hooda then joined Pant on the crease. The duo smashed great shots and took their team to a seven-wicket victory against the hosts with six balls remaining.


Earlier, West Indies set up 165 run target for Rohit Sharma’s side largely thanks to a masterful half-century from Kyle Mayers and a good finishing charge by Rovman Powell. Put to bat first, West Indies got off to the good start as the opening duo Brandon King and Kyle Mayers gave their team a solid platform.


King was later dismissed by Pandya after scoring 20 runs. Mayers started hammering Indian bowlers as he smashed two fours against Bhuvneshwar Kumar. Captain Nicholas Pooran scored 22 runs before being dismissed by Bhuvneshwar. Rovman Powell was sent back to the pavilion after scoring 23 runs in 13 deliveries.


Shimron Hetmyer played a knock of 20 runs to give his team a respectable total as the lower order failed to score.


Brief score: West Indies 164/5 (Kyle Mayers 73, Rovman Powell 23; Bhuvneshwar Kumar 2/35) lost to India 165/3 (Suryakumar Yadav 76, Rishabh Pant 33 n.o.; Akeal Hosein 1/28)


(with ANI inputs)