Cricket-West Indies deny India clean sweep as Hope scores unbeaten 162

Shai Hope anchored the chase with an unbeaten 162 ​off 143 balls as West Indies prevented India ​from completing a series sweep with ‌a ​five-wicket victory in the third and final one-day international in New Chandigarh on Saturday. After the early loss of John Campbell in the fifth over, ‌Hope combined with Amir Jangoo for a crucial 109-run stand to steady the innings, helping West Indies reach 78-1 at the end of the powerplay.

Jangoo struck his third ODI half-century before being run out for 67, ‌while Sherfane Rutherford fell soon after for 24. Hope, however, maintained the momentum, adding another vital ‌56-run partnership to keep the chase on track. Despite the dismissals of Keemo Paul and Matthew Forde, Hope remained in control of the chase. Gudakesh Motie contributed a brisk 19 off 14 balls, as West Indies sealed victory with 10 balls to spare.

India ⁠were ​forced to rebuild after slipping ⁠to 4-2, but Rohit Sharma and Ruturaj Gaikwad steadied the innings with a 137-run partnership. Sharma anchored the recovery with ⁠a fluent 92 off 85 balls before falling eight runs short of a century. After Rohit's dismissal, KL Rahul made the ​most of his lone batting opportunity of the series, bringing up his ninth ODI hundred. ⁠Rahul accelerated sharply at the death, smashing 42 runs off the final 12 balls he faced to convert his century into a ⁠career-best ​ODI score. Gaikwad chipped in with a half-century before being dismissed by Jayden Seales.

With Rahul unbeaten on 129, India finished strongly through late cameos from Naman Dhir (30 off 21 balls) and Anshul Kamboj (17 ⁠off nine balls). Their contributions helped propel India to 351-7, with Rahul and Gurnoor Brar unbeaten at ⁠the crease. The Shubman Gill-led ⁠side had already secured the series by winning the opening two ODIs. In the second match, India completed a record chase of 406 with 6.3 overs ‌to spare to ‌seal the series.