Shai Hope smashed an unbeaten 102 off just 45 balls to lead the West Indies to their highest-ever successful T20I chase of India’s 249
Despite a top-order collapse orchestrated by Mayank Yadav, Hope and Sherfane Rutherford turned the tide with a brilliant 120-run partnership
Hope sealed the historic victory in style, bringing up his second T20I hundred with the winning six off Axar Patel
Shai Hope played one of the finest T20I innings of his career in Ranchi. He finished with an unbeaten 102 and hit the winning six off Axar Patel, ending the chase and bringing up his second T20I hundred in the same stroke. West Indies chased down India’s 249 for their highest successful run chase in T20Is. It is the second-fastest T20I century by a West Indies batter, and it came in a chase of 250, which West Indies completed in 18.3 overs. That is their highest successful run chase in T20Is.
The chase began in a nightmare. Mayank Yadav removed Shimron Hetmyer, Kamil Pooran and Rovman Powell, and West Indies were 72/3 at the end of the powerplay. Hope kept the target within reach by hitting two sixes off Axar in the third over. He then reached his fifty off 24 balls, which equals the fastest for West Indies against India in the last decade, and did so with a six off Shivam Dube.
Hope and Sherfane Rutherford added 120 for the fourth wicket. It is the second-highest century stand for the fourth wicket or lower for West Indies in T20Is, behind only Andre Russell and Rutherford’s 139 against Australia in Perth. Rutherford hit 84 off 37 balls before Kuldeep Yadav had him caught by Sanju Samson.
Hope has often done well in India. He scored 95 in the Pune ODI of 2018, and was West Indies’ leading run-scorer on the 2019 tour. His Test hundred in India in late 2025 was among the best of his recent red-ball runs. He also led West Indies at the T20 World Cup in India, scoring an unbeaten 61 off 44 balls against Nepal in Mumbai in February..
The knock extends a remarkable spell for Hope, who had also hit back-to-back ODI hundreds in the preceding series. He now has 15 fifty-plus scores in T20Is, second only to Chris Gayle among West Indies batters.
