Suryakumar Yadav exhibited a stunning performance, smashing 83 runs off 44 balls, propelling India to a seven-wicket victory over the West Indies in the third Twenty20 international in Guyana on Tuesday. This triumph has kept India’s hopes alive in the series.

Following the early dismissals of T20 debutant Yashasvi Jaiswal and Shubman Gill during their pursuit of 160 runs, Suryakumar Yadav took center stage with a dazzling innings encompassing 10 fours and four sixes. His dynamic display came to an end when he was caught out on an Alzarri Joseph full toss to deep backward square leg. However, Tilak Varma remained unbeaten on 49, and captain Hardik Pandya sealed the win with a decisive six, leaving 13 balls unused.

West Indies’ skipper Rovman Powell played a pivotal role in propelling his team to a total of 159/5 after choosing to bat upon winning the toss in Providence. He contributed a rapid 40 not out. Brandon King scored 42 runs at a run-a-ball rate, while opener Kyle Mayers (25) and Nicholas Pooran (20) also made noteworthy contributions.

India’s left-arm wrist spinner Kuldeep Yadav, replacing Ravi Bishnoi, led the bowling charge with figures of 3/28. Axar Patel and Mukesh Kumar secured a wicket each.

This victory by India narrowed the West Indies’ series lead to 2-1, following their four-run loss in the series opener and the dramatic two-wicket defeat on Sunday.

The West Indies are striving to secure their first series victory of two or more matches against India in any format since 2016. Prior to this T20I success, India had emerged triumphant in the preceding two-Test series (1-0) and the ODIs (2-1) against the West Indies.