Abhishek Sharma's 69 and Arshdeep Singh's 3-44 put India 2-1 up in Indore

India defended 223 at the Holkar Cricket Stadium to move 2-1 up in the five-match series, Abhishek Sharma's 69 and Arshdeep Singh's three wickets outweighing a night of expensive bowling

India beat West Indies by 14 runs in the third T20I in Indore, posting 223 and holding the visitors to 209 for 7 after Shai Hope won the toss and chose to bowl.

Abhishek Sharma made 69 from 30 balls to take the game away inside the powerplay, and Arshdeep Singh returned 3-44 to be named player of the match.

Neither side was comfortable for long. India lost all ten wickets inside their 20 overs, two of them to run-outs, and West Indies were still within range in the final over.

Abhishek sets the tempo

Asked to bat, India were 87 for 1 at the end of the powerplay. Abhishek reached fifty from 18 balls and struck six fours and five sixes before he was dismissed by Shamar Springer.

Ishan Kishan matched him for intent at the other end with 37 from 18 balls, and the opening pair carried India past 100 inside eight overs.

It was the start India had wanted after losing the second T20I in Ranchi, where their bowlers failed to defend 249.

Three wickets for nine runs

From 115 for 1 the innings turned. Kishan was stumped off Roston Chase, who then removed captain Shreyas Iyer for 1, and three wickets fell for nine runs in ten balls.

India were 125 for 4 at halfway. Tilak Varma's 28 from 16 balls ended in a run-out, and Axar Patel was run out in a second mix-up.

Nitish Kumar Reddy's 21 and a late cameo from Prince Yadav lifted the total, India reaching 174 for 6 at 15 overs before being bowled out on the last ball of the innings.

Chase, Shamar Joseph and Springer took two wickets each for the visitors.

Arshdeep frames the chase

Arshdeep removed Hope for 5 early, and Axar Patel had Rovman Powell caught for 5 to leave West Indies 84 for 3 at the ten-over mark with the required rate at 14 an over.

Shimron Hetmyer, who took 19 runs from one Arshdeep over, made 43 from 26 balls before Naman Dhir dismissed him. Dhir also removed Kamil Pooran for 42 from 27 balls and finished with 2-39.

Sherfane Rutherford, who had seen West Indies home in Ranchi, struck 32 from 20 balls to keep the chase alive until Arshdeep bowled him in the 18th over.

Springer's late threat

Shamar Springer walked in at No. 8 in the 18th over and finished unbeaten on 35 from 11 balls with four sixes, narrowing the margin without ever quite reaching the target.

Chase was unbeaten on 5 at the other end as West Indies, 54 for 1 at the end of their own powerplay, closed 14 short.

Hyderabad next

"Honestly, that was a phenomenal start. Abhishek doing what he does in the Powerplay and Kishan coming in," Iyer said afterwards, adding of his attack: "The clarity was much more visible. They were decisive in their execution."

Hope pointed to the margins and to the conditions. "Probably with the ball, we could have executed better and we let a few boundaries through," he said, noting that dew "did play a part" and crediting India's bowlers for showing his side "how to execute yorkers".

The sides move to the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad on 14 October, with the series ending in Bengaluru on 17 October.

Scorecard: India 223 (20 overs; Abhishek Sharma 69, Ishan Kishan 37, Tilak Varma 28) beat West Indies 209 for 7 (20 overs; Shimron Hetmyer 43, Kamil Pooran 42, Shamar Springer 35*; Arshdeep Singh 3-44, Naman Dhir 2-39) by 14 runs.

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