West Indies captain Shai Hope won the toss and elected to field first in the third T20 International against India at the Holkar Cricket Stadium here on Sunday.
The five-match series is currently locked at 1-1. India took the lead with an eight-wicket victory in the opening game in Lucknow on October 6, before West Indies levelled it with a thrilling six-wicket win in Ranchi on October 9. In that high-scoring encounter, the visitors successfully chased down 250 — their highest successful T20I chase — thanks to unbeaten centuries and half-centuries from Hope (102 not out off 45 balls) and Sherfane Rutherford (84 off 37).
India, led by Shreyas Iyer, will now bat first under the lights in Indore. The Holkar Stadium has a reputation as a batting-friendly venue with short boundaries, and evening dew is expected to aid the chasing side later in the night. Temperatures are forecast to drop from daytime highs around 34°C, creating conditions that often favour teams batting second in T20 night games.
The match is scheduled to begin at 7:00 PM IST, with live coverage on Star Sports Network and streaming available on JioHotstar.
Both sides head into the contest looking to seize the series lead, with two matches still remaining after Indore — in Hyderabad and Bengaluru. India will be aiming to tighten their bowling attack after conceding a big total in Ranchi, while West Indies will look to build on their recent chasing form and aggressive batting displays.
Squads:
India (Playing XI): Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson(w), Ishan Kishan, Shreyas Iyer(c), Tilak Varma, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Naman Dhir, Axar Patel, Mayank Yadav, Arshdeep Singh, Prince Yadav.
West Indies (Playing XI): Shai Hope(w/c), Kamil Pooran, Shimron Hetmyer, Rovman Powell, Sherfane Rutherford, Quentin Sampson, Keemo Paul, Roston Chase, Shamar Springer, Shamar Joseph, Gudakesh Motie
