Suryakumar's 83 helped India keep the series alive, and reduced the deficit to 2-1.
After suffer back-to-back defeats in the T20Is, the Men In Blue bounced back in style on Tuesday by registering a 7-wicket win in the third T20I at the Providence Stadium, Guyana. The win helped India keep their hopes alive, and reduce the deficit to 2-1 with two more matches left to be played. (More Cricket News)
Debutant Yashavi Jaiswal (1) and Shubman Gill (6) got out cheaply in run chase before Suryakumar came up with a special 83 off 44 balls to help India gun down the target in 17.5 overs.
Tilak Varma (49 not out off 37) was happy to play second fiddle to his senior Mumbai Indians teammate in their 87-run stand. Tilak missed his second straight fifty in his debut series as skipper Hardik Pandya (20 not out off 15) hit the winning six.
Suryakumar was quizzed about his mindset in the post-match presentation ceremony. He said, “It was really important to be myself when I went in to bat in the powerplay, that's what the team management also wanted."
After suffering a two-wicket defeat in the second T20I, skipper Hardik Pandya came down heavy on the batters, stating that they had to be more responsible. India could only muster 152/7 as the hosts managed to wipe it off with seven balls to spare. Even in the first T20I, Indian batters failed to put up a show as they fell short by four runs in the 150-run chase.
However, being one of the most experienced members on the tour and also Pandya's deputy in the series, 'SKY' was thankful that he stood up to his skipper's expectations.
“It was running on the back of my mind (that India had never lost three T20Is in a row) but at the same time we spoke in the team meeting, our captain said someone needs to put their hand up and win the match, glad I was able to do that,” he said.
The two teams will now meet on Saturday in Lauderhill, Florida for the fourth encounter. If West Indies win, it will help them seal the series whereas for India, they are in a must-win situation as it will set up a grand finale for the fifth T20I that will be held the following day.