Arshdeep Singh of India celebrates the wicket of Sherfane Rutherford of West Indies during the 3rd T20I match between India and West Indies at the Holkar Stadium, Indore, India on October 11, 2026.
Photo: SurjeetYadav / CREIMAS for BCCI
India beat the West Indies by 14 runs in the third T20I to take a 2-1 lead in the five-match series. As has been the case throughout this tour, it was another high-scoring fixture with the West Indies looking capable of chasing down a target of 224 runs at one point. Captain Shreyas Iyer was all praise for the manner in which his bowlers executed their plans in Indore.
“It was wonderful because the bowlers were pretty confident with what they wanted to execute,” said Iyer in the post-match presentation ceremony. “The clarity was much more visible. They were decisive in their execution and when I was passing the ball to them, each and every bowler was up for the challenge and that’s what you want.”
The way India bowled in Indore was in particular a marked improvement from how they performed in the second T20I, in which the West Indies stunned the hosts by chasing down 250. The improvement mattered because India had been forced to defend a total built on Abhishek Sharma’s explosive 69 off 30 balls. His T20I scores since making 108 against Afghanistan in Delhi last month had been 0, 7, 61, 20 and 21. After Sanju Samson’s 82 in Ranchi, Abhishek needed a response in Indore. He delivered, giving India a blistering start before their innings unravelled.
Ishan Kishan later counterattacked with 37 off 18 after India lost a few wickets. Their 108-run stand from 40 balls gave India a platform for a huge total. But Abhishek and Kishan fell within nine deliveries, and the middle order could not sustain the momentum.
“Honestly, that was a phenomenal start. Abhishek doing what he does in the powerplay and (Ishan) Kishan coming in. He’s been great in the last few months. Even Prince (Yadav) playing the cameo in the end, those were crucial runs.
“West Indies, you can never take them lightly. So, we had to make sure we never got complacent. These are high-scoring grounds but it’s important to stick to our process and follow our routines and make sure we stay offensive,” said Iyer.