India welcome West Indies for the fifth and final T20I, in Bengaluru, on 17th October, with honours even. Who'd have called that one?
Few touring sides emerge from the subcontinent with anything to show for their white-ball efforts. India have not dropped a bilateral home T20I series since 2019, underlining their near-flawless domestic supremacy.
The Windies carried the momentum they garnered in the third of three ODIs, when Shai Hope produced one of the all-time great one-day knocks in a run chase (162 off 143), as the visitors surpassed a herculean total of 351 with 10 balls to spare.
It has been a mammoth run-scoring series, with both sides crossing 200 in three of the four matches, and Darren Sammy's troops have shown they cannot be out-batted on batting-friendly tracks.
In fact, in a world where chasing after winning the toss is obvious, they won batting first at Hyderabad, posting 247 courtesy of another Hope century - his fourth of the series.
The latest India vs West Indies T20I odds are available on LiveScore Bet
India's fifth bowler conundrum
Flouting the modern-day mandate of fielding five bowlers, Gautam Gambhir and co. have repeatedly thrown the ball to Naman Dhir, Shivam Dube and Nitish Kumar Reddy.
The patterns are there to see. Across the four matches, the fifth bowling options together have bled a whopping 202 runs in 17 overs. In the matches that West Indies have come out on top, that collective economy extends to 12.87.
The answer to India's balance has always been Hardik Pandya. But in his absence, and with the lower order often not required, should the Men in Blue tighten their bowling?
Unsung middle order key for West Indies
Every time India have prized the wicket of Hope early, they've won the match in this bilateral.
Momentum remains one of the most underrated facets in the T20 game, and the middle order has steadily found its rhythm with each passing fixture.
Sherfane Rutherford, particularly, has been a middle overs aggressor. He blasted 84 off 37 in the 2nd T20I, and followed up with 32 off 20 and an unbeaten 49 off 26 in the following games, adding the impetus that his side has needed towards the backend.
Shimron Hetmyer has also discovered a shade of his attacking best in the last two games. And with Romario Shepherd back into the side from injury, the batting only gets deeper, and more frightening.
Player's Total Runs - Over 30.5 - Shai Hope
Hope has the most centuries by a visiting batter - seven in merely 31 innings. He went level with Everton Weekes and Tilakaratne Dilshan for the joint-most 100s on an India tour.
Joking about his man of the match awards, he said, "To be honest, they are a bit heavy, and we have got to look at the luggage weight. I think we are going to have some problems going back home."
With the Chinnaswamy stadium a batting paradise as it is, expect Hope to come good once again.
Recommended Bet: Player's Total Runs - Over 30.5 - Shai Hope
Total Runs Away Team, Over 1 - Under 6.5
Arshdeep Singh copped a blow to his bowling shoulder and has subsequently been ruled out for this outing. In his place comes Bhuvneshwar Kumar - already been recalled for the upcoming New Zealand T20Is - for what could be his first international since 2022.
The evergreen pacer has 45 dismissals to his name across the last two IPL seasons.
He remains an exceptional exponent of the new ball and has played much of his T20 cricket of late on the Chinnaswamy turf. With rain expected, any moisture trapped in the 22-yard strip could give the 26-year-old plenty of early swing to exploit.
Recommended Bet: Total Runs Away Team, Over 1 - Under 6.5
