India captain Rohit Sharma admits his side failed to handle the pressure of knockout cricket as they lost by 10 wickets to England in the T20 World Cup semi-finals.

A record-breaking opening stand from captain Jos Buttler (80 not out) and Alex Hales (86 not out) saw the Group 2 winners shattered at the Adelaide Oval.

The pair's stand of 170 set a record for the highest partnership in T20 World Cup history, beating the 168 put on by South Africa duo Quinton de Kock and Rilee Rossouw against Bangladesh last month.

Rohit – a member of the India team that won the inaugural edition of the tournament in 2007, their only tournament triumph to date – admitted his side did not do themselves justice on the biggest stage in the end.

"When it comes to knockout stages, it is all about handling that pressure," he said. "You cannot really teach how to handle pressure.

"All these guys have played enough cricket to understand that. It's all about handling pressure and keeping calm.

"Look at the [group] stages, when we won that first game, we showed a lot of character. We handled it pretty well, [we] executed our plans.

"It's all about executing [that]. If you don't execute, you'll find yourself in trouble. It's really disappointing how we turned up.

"We were not good enough with the ball. It was not a wicket where a team should chase us down in 16 [or] 17 overs. We just didn't turn up."

England will now face Pakistan in Sunday's final at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, while India will turn their attention to a red-ball tour of New Zealand, starting next week.

India can be proud of their T20 World Cup run, regardless of the result against England in Thursday's semi-final, so says captain Rohit Sharma.

The two teams will battle it out on Thursday at the Adelaide Oval for the opportunity to take on Pakistan in the final at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on Sunday.

India finished top of Group 2, and have key players in form heading into the clash with England, who claimed second place in Group 1 at Australia's expense.

In his first major tournament in charge, Rohit believes India must be satisfied with their progress, as they target a third appearance in a T20 World Cup final.

He said in a press conference: "For us as players, as a team, I think we can pride ourselves to be here at this point in time because we saw two of the quality teams which were knocked out, and anything can happen in this format.

"For us, I think to be here at this point in time, I think we can take a lot of credit and pride ourselves in where we have come."

Two of the key batters for India in this tournament have been Virat Kohli and Suryakumar Yadav. 

Former captain Kohli is 42 runs away from becoming the first batter to register 4,000 runs in men's T20I cricket and is the leading run-scorer in the tournament with 246 runs.

Meanwhile, Yadav impressed against Zimbabwe with his fearlessness and creative shot selection in a brilliant 61 not out off just 25 deliveries.

"He's the sort of guy who just doesn't carry any baggage with him," Rohit said of Yadav.

"You can see that when he plays. It's not like he's played a couple of tournaments like that. He's been playing like that for a year now, and it shows, and you can judge the kind of character he is, and he likes to play like that.

"He's shown great maturity, as well, has taken pressure from a lot of the guys the way he plays, and it rubs off on the other side, as well, when they bat around him."

Overcoming Yadav and Kohli will be crucial if England are to progress, but dismissing the pair could prove even more difficult should Mark Wood, who is an injury concern, be unable to play.

Chris Jordan could fill in, while Sam Curran has stepped up, having taken 10 wickets in the tournament and with one more the 24-year-old would become the most successful English bowler in a single edition of the T20 World Cup.

Captain Jos Buttler knows that in Yadav, England face one of the world's most dangerous players.

"I think he's someone who has probably been the batter of the tournament so far in terms of the way you want to watch someone go about it," he said.

"I think his biggest strength looks to be the amount of freedom he plays with. He's obviously got all the shots, but he allows himself to play all the shots, as well. He's got a very free mindset from what I can see.

"But as with any batsman in the world, it takes one chance to create a wicket. We desperately need to find a way to do that, and it would be remiss just to think about him. I think they have some other excellent players, as well."

England will be looking to overturn their poor form against India in recent fixtures, with just one win in their last five T20I meetings.

Rohit Sharma believes Suryakumar Yadav is getting better and better as the India captain hailed his team-mate's form as "remarkable".

Yadav scored an unbeaten 61 from just 25 deliveries on Sunday against Zimbabwe to help seal a 71-run victory, sealing India's progression to the T20 World Cup semi-finals as Group 2 winners.

India will now face England, who edged out Sri Lanka on Saturday to progress into the last four at the expense of hosts Australia, for a place in the final.

Yadav has been in fine form throughout the tournament. The 32-year-old has scored 225 runs across his five innings, while his knock at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on Sunday included 10 boundaries, with four of those beating the rope entirely. 

"What Suryakumar is doing for the team is remarkable, just coming out there, playing that way, taking the pressure off the others," Rohit said.

"We know his ability, and it allows the guy at the other end to take his time.

"The dugout can really be at ease when he bats, and he's shown a lot of composure when he's batted. We expected this from him, and he's gone from strength to strength."

Despite being pleased with India's display against Zimbabwe, Rohit is looking for a step up in their level against England in Adelaide.

"[It was] a very good all-round performance, [which was] something we were looking for," Rohit said.

"We had qualified, but we wanted to come out and play the way we wanted to play, which we achieved.

"We have played a game there, but we need to adjust quickly. England are a good team, and it will be a great contest.

"We should take pride in qualifying, firstly, and if we play that semi-final well, we have another big game as well."

Virat Kohli "feels at home in Adelaide" after stepping up again to help India earn a crucial five-run win over Bangladesh at the T20 World Cup.

A 64 not out from the in-form Kohli in a rain-affected game at the Adelaide Oval pushed India to 184-6 after KL Rahul had got his side off to flier with a half-century off 32 deliveries 

It was a tense finish, with Litton Das' electric 60 off 27 giving Bangladesh a fighting chance, but the elements dented their momentum any they fell short of a revised 151 target.

India consequently went top of Group 2, and Kohli reflected on another job well done in a Player of the Match performance.

"I absolutely love playing in this ground. Right from the nets at the back, as soon as I enter, it makes me feel at home," he said.

"That knock at the MCG was meant to be, but when I come here, it's like I'm meant to come to Adelaide and enjoy my batting.

"As soon as I knew the World Cup was in Australia, I was grinning from ear to ear. I knew good cricketing shots would be the key. I knew the kind of experience and game awareness of having played in Australia will come in handy for the team."

Captain Rohit Sharma failed to deliver for his team, falling early and getting out for just two runs off eight deliveries. 

"I was calm and nervous at the same time," Sharma said. "But it was important to stay calm as a group to execute.

"Shortened games can go either way, but we held our nerves well after the game started; it was a good win in the end."

With three vital knocks in India's four matches so far, Kohli has been invaluable and proved doubters wrong after his form was questioned in the past 12 months after stepping down as captain. 

Sharma said: "In my mind, Kohli was always there. It was just a matter of a few innings here and there, and he hasn't looked back since the Asia Cup. The guy has so much experience.

"The way KL [Rahul] batted as well, it was important for him and the team. We know what sort of player he is at the top of the order.

"Some of the catches we took today were great to watch. When you're playing in front of a big crowd, it's not easy. To take those catches, it shows the character of the guys. I have no doubts over our fielding abilities."

Bangladesh could not get over the line despite giving India a tense end to the game, and their hopes of progressing rest on a final group stage game with Pakistan on Sunday. 

Tigers captain Shakib Al Hasan said: "It's been the story when we play India. We're almost there but don't cross the line. 

"It was a great game, the crowd enjoyed it, both teams enjoyed it; in the end, someone has to win and someone has to lose.

"Litton is batting really well, probably he's our best batsmen going around. We thought we could chase this down after the start. Our plan was to get India's top order quickly, that's why I bowled out Taskin, he's been our main bowler. Unfortunately he couldn't get the wickets today, he was unlucky, but it was a plan get India's top order out and dictate the game."

India will face Zimbabwe in the final Super 12 match of the tournament after Bangladesh play Pakistan in a potentially tournament-defining clash. 

Hardik Pandya and Shikhar Dhawan will captain India's T20I and ODI squads respectively on their November tour of New Zealand after Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and KL Rahul were rested.

Hardik will lead India when they begin their tour of New Zealand with the first of three T20Is in Wellington on November 18 – just five days after the T20 World Cup in Australia ends.

One week later, they begin a three-match one-day series at Eden Park in Auckland, in which Dhawan – who led India on a tour of the West Indies earlier this year – will take the captaincy.

Rohit, Kohli and Rahul will all miss the trip to New Zealand, but as many as eight other players currently in Australia for the World Cup will be in attendance.

Hardik, Rishabh Pant, Deepak Hooda, Suryakumar Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Harshal Patel, Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Arshdeep Singh have all been selected for the T20I series, with Pant named vice-captain for the entire tour.

There was no place in either squad for Jasprit Bumrah or Ravindra Jadeja, however, after the duo were forced to miss the World Cup through injury.

India captain Rohit Sharma was left frustrated by his team's erratic fielding after Sunday's five-wicket defeat to South Africa.

Aiden Markram's 52 and David Miller's unbeaten 59 guided the Proteas to victory at Perth Stadium in a thrilling, but low-scoring, T20 World Cup clash.

South Africa's bowling attack – spearheaded by pace duo Wayne Parnell (3-15) and Lungi Ngidi (4-29) – reduced India to 133-9 in their 20 overs, with Suryakumar Yadav (68) the only batsman to offer any firm resistance.

Yet India had hope when Quinton de Kock, Rilee Rossouw and Temba Bavuma all fell in the first six overs of South Africa's chase. Miller and Markram subsequently steadied the ship for the Proteas, yet the latter was fortunate.

Rohit and Suryakumar both missed run-out attempts, while Markram was dropped by Kohli in the deep. Indeed, he brought up his half-century with a sliced shot that landed between two fielders on the boundary.

It was a collective effort that disappointed Rohit, who said: "I thought we fought well until the end, but South Africa played well. The pitch is such that the wicket can come any time for the seamers. It was a match-winning partnership from Miller and Markram.

"But we were not good enough on the field. We have played in such conditions, so conditions are not an excuse. We want to be consistent in that department.

"We could not hold on to our chances, we missed a few run-outs, including myself."

The victory moved South Africa top of Group 2, with the Proteas having taken five points from their opening three matches.

However, while Markram and Miller starred with the bat and Parnell and Ngidi were brilliant with the ball, it was another tough day for captain Bavuma, who scored only 10 before edging Mohammed Shami to Dinesh Karthik.

Bavuma has struggled for form in T20Is this year, with Sunday's short-lived knock only the third time he has reached double figures from 10 innings.

Former Proteas captain Markram, however, had words of support for his skipper.

"I think every player goes through these sort of form slumps," Markram said in a press conference when asked about Bavuma's struggles. "With games that are so close to each other, it can seem a lot worse than what it is.

"I think the whole team, management involved, have been there for Temba and our ideas don't change about his ability. We all know his ability and our team and the role that he plays, not just from batting, but also from a leadership point of view as well.

"His leadership in my opinion has been excellent. On-field decisions have been really good that he's making. So I've got no doubt he'll come right with the bat. If he does, and we can get off to some good starts, I think it's going to help our batting unit a lot, but certainly not doubting his ability at all.

"I think the whole team, and I can speak on behalf of the team, we all support him. It happens to everyone. We've all been through it. I've been through it more than once, unfortunately. It's always just one knock away, and that's sort of the message that Temba has been given for the time being."

Virat Kohli produced what captain Rohit Sharma hailed as one of the greatest innings by an India batsman in the dramatic victory over Pakistan at the T20 World Cup.

Pakistan looked to be well in control after tallying 159-8 in front of over 90,000 spectators at the MCG and then reducing India to 31-4 in reply.

However, Kohli struck 82 not out, sharing in a fifth-wicket stand of 113 with Hardik Pandya along the way.

When Pakistan's Mohammad Nawaz wobbled under the pressure of delivering the final over of the match, India took advantage and snatched a four-wicket win over their great rivals with a single from the final ball.

India needed 28 from eight balls at one stage, but consecutive sixes from Kohli off Haris Rauf at the end of the 19th over changed that to 16 from six.

Amid high drama as India lost both Pandya (40) and Dinesh Karthik (1) in the closing over, Kohli helped the team he used to skipper over the line.

Rohit said of Kohli's effort: "It is definitely his best for sure. From the situation we were in, and to come out with victory, I think it has to be one of India's best knocks, not just his best knock.

"Because still in the 13th over we were so behind the game and the required rate was climbing up and up. To come out and chase that score was an extremely brilliant effort from Virat, and Hardik played a role there."

Kohli ceded the white-ball captaincy to Rohit soon after last year's T20 World Cup, and Sunday's hero in Melbourne had been struggling for runs until recently finding a little spark.

Rohit said: "We know the qualities that he has, and he's done so well in these type of conditions in all three forms, so obviously he used his experience today more than anything else – staying calm under pressure.

"We know how good he is when the score is in front of him. He's one of the best chasers in the world, so I thought that 100-run partnership was a game-changing moment."

Kohli initially struggled to contextualise what he achieved.

He said at the post-match presentation: "It's a surreal atmosphere, I have no words, no idea how that happened. I am really lost for words.

"The calculation was simple. Nawaz had one over to bowl, so if I could take Haris down, they would panic. From 28 in eight, it came down to 16 in six. I tried to stick to my instincts."

On reflection, Kohli agreed it rated as one of his finest innings. He ranked it even above another famous 82 not out – one that he scored against Australia in Mohali, in the 2016 edition of this competition.

"Standing here, I just feel like it was meant to be," he said. "Till today, Mohali was my best innings, against Australia. Today, I will count this one higher."

Hosts Australia head into the T20 World Cup as defending champions, but no team has ever won back-to-back editions of this tournament.

The showpiece for international cricket's shortest format has provided some spectacular moments since South Africa staged the first edition 15 years ago.

West Indies are the only team to have carried off the trophy twice, and their long-time ring master Chris Gayle is absent this time, having not featured since the Caribbean side bowed out of the T20 World Cup last year.

With Gayle all but retired from internationals, and with others shuffling away, new stars will emerge over the coming weeks, and some established figures will be chasing records.

Here, Stats Perform looks at the T20 World Cup's top performers, and the spectacular feats from tournaments gone by that the class of 2022 will have in their sights.

Batters bid to go big in post-Gayle era

Sri Lanka great Mahela Jayawardene is the only batter to have topped 1,000 runs in the history of the T20 World Cup, reaching 1,016 from 31 innings, spanning 2007 to 2014. He went out on a sensational high, passing the 1,000-run barrier in the final as Sri Lanka won the 2014 title by beating India in Mirpur.

Windies great Gayle sits second on that list with 965 runs, and is the only batter to have made two centuries in T20 World Cups. Those were also the fastest two tons in T20 World Cup history (47 balls v England in 2016, 50 balls v South Africa in 2007).

There are a number of batters who could join Jayawardene in reaching 1,000 runs at the T20 World Cup, but principal among them are the India pair of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli.

Rohit replaced Kohli as skipper at the end of last year, following India's failure to get past the Super 12 stage at the World Cup, and there could be a friendly rivalry emerging in the race for four figures.

Rohit enters the tournament for top-ranked India on 847 runs in past editions, while Kohli has 845. Strikingly, Rohit's runs have come from 30 innings at an average of 38.50, whereas Kohli has plundered his in just 19 innings, and the latter's average of 76.81 is by far and away the best among all batters with 500-plus runs in the competition.

It helps, of course, that Kohli has finished unbeaten in eight of those knocks. The next highest average among such players is former England batter Kevin Pietersen's 44.61 (580 runs from 15 innings, two unbeaten).

The highest score by any batter in a single innings at the T20 World Cup remains the 123 that Brendon McCullum, now England's Test head coach, plundered for New Zealand against Bangladesh in Pallekele at the 2012 tournament. That was McCullum's highest score across his entire T20I career.

David Warner is another who could make it to 1,000 runs, but the Australia opener will need a big tournament to make that happen. He goes in on 762 runs from 30 prior innings, Cricinfo statistics show.

Only one batter has reached 500 T20 World Cup runs without making a fifty, and that was former India captain MS Dhoni, who skippered the team to the 2007 title. His best score in 29 innings, from which he accumulated 529 runs, was a modest 45.

Pakistan's Babar Azam dazzled at the 2021 T20 World Cup, scoring a tournament-high 303 runs in six innings.

His four half-centuries matched the most by any player in an edition of the tournament, the ICC said, having been previously achieved in 2014 by Kohli and in 2007 by Matthew Hayden.

Shakib, Mendis and Campher set standards for bowling elite

Bangladesh's Shakib Al Hasan is something of a T20 World Cup superstar. As well as ranking eighth on the run-scoring list (698 from 31 innings), the all-rounder has taken more wickets than anyone, with 41 at an average of 17.29.

A haul of 11 at the 2021 tournament took him top of the list, and there is nobody threatening to get particularly close to the 35-year-old spinner.

Among players selected for this tournament, the player with the next highest wicket haul is India's Ravichandran Ashwin, with 26 from 18 matches.

When it comes to T20 cricket, unsurprisingly there have been precious few five-wicket hauls, given the bowlers each have just a four-over allocation.

Sri Lanka's Ajantha Mendis is the only bowler to have snagged six in an innings, taking princely figures of 6-8 against Zimbabwe in 2012, while eight others have taken five wickets in a match, headed by Rangana Herath's remarkable 5-3 against New Zealand at the 2014 tournament, when the Black Caps were skittled for 60.

That ranks as the fourth-lowest team score in a T20 World Cup, with Netherlands responsible for the two worst totals, both times folding against Sri Lanka when making 39 at Chattogram in 2014 and 44 in Sharjah last year.

The other side to post a sub-60 score were West Indies, routed for 55 by England in Dubai 12 months ago.

A hat-trick represents the holy grail for all bowlers, and there have been just four in T20 World Cups, with Brett Lee taking the first for Australia against Bangladesh at the inaugural 2007 tournament.

There were no more until the 2021 tournament, which incredibly featured three: Curtis Campher took four wickets in four balls for Ireland against Netherlands, before Wanindu Hasaranga (for Sri Lanka against South Africa) and Kagiso Rabada (for South Africa against England) both managed three in three.

David Miller's stunning century proved to be in vain as India earned a 16-run victory over South Africa to take an unassailable 2-0 lead in their T20I series.

India cruised to an eight-wicket win in the low-scoring opener on Wednesday, but the runs flowed in Guwahati on Sunday as Suryakumar Yadav (61) and KL Rahul (57) helped the hosts post an imposing 237-3.

Suryakumar and Rahul both hit half-centuries in the first match, and they were at it again as South Africa's bowling attack failed to get control of the match, with only Keshav Maharaj (2-23) picking up wickets as the likes of Kagiso Rabada and Lungi Ngidi struggled.

India's score was their fourth-highest in T20Is, aided by important innings from captain Rohit Sharma (43) and Virat Kohli's unbeaten 49. Yadav's runs, meanwhile, came from just 22 balls, five of which he despatched for six.

South Africa's chase started woefully, as captain Temba Bavuma and Rilee Rossouw were both dismissed for nought by Arshdeep Singh in the second over.

Quinton de Kock and Miller fought to keep South Africa in the game, as former captain De Kock made a snappy 69 not out while Miller hit 106no from 47 balls.

Despite those efforts, the Proteas never truly threatened to chase the challenging total as they lost the series with a game left to play, finishing on 221-3. The third match takes place on Tuesday in Indore.

Record-setting Suryakumar

Suryakumar became the fastest player to reach 1,000 T20I runs in terms of balls faced, as he hit five fours and as many maximums to post his second half-century in a row.

He reached 1,000 T20I runs in 573 balls, 31 fewer than the previous record-holder Glenn Maxwell required, and helped India to set a huge target as the Proteas bowlers were carted to all parts.

Rabada struggles to make a dent

A key member of South Africa's pace attack, Rabada failed to make a significant impact as he finished with figures of 0-57 in his four overs.

The most expensive of the visitors' bowlers, Rabada was hit for 10 boundaries as India stormed to a total out of South Africa's reach.

Rohit Sharma and Dinesh Karthik powered India to a six-wicket victory over Australia in an eight-over dust-up in Nagpur as the hosts levelled the series.

Chasing down Australia's 90-5, India reached their target with four balls to spare after Karthik cracked the first delivery he faced for six and followed up with a pull for four.

The outfield was considered too wet for the T20I match to begin on time after rain earlier in the week, and ground staff worked to make it playable, even if only for a reduced-overs contest. Play eventually began after 21:30 local time.

Australia won the first match in Mohali on Tuesday, making this second contest in the three-game series a must-win fixture for the hosts.

After being put in, Australia captain Aaron Finch rattled to 31 at the top of the order, before Jasprit Bumrah took his leg stump, and wicketkeeper-batter Matthew Wade cracked a brutal 43 not out from 20 balls.

KL Rahul (10) and Virat Kohli (11) just about made it to double figures as India set about their chase, but it was captain Sharma who pinned the innings together, with four sixes and four fours in his 20-ball 46no.

Daniel Sams was trusted with the ball for the final over as Australia looked for some heroics, but the paceman was flogged over the ropes by Karthik from the first ball before sealing victory with another boundary. The series decider takes place in Hyderabad on Sunday.

Finch sees Australia fall short

Captain Finch ended his three-match run of sub-30 scores in T20Is, but his efforts were not enough to catapult Australia towards a sufficiently high score.

The skipper said at the post-match presentation: "We just got out-executed a little bit towards the back end there. Rohit played a great innings."

He said India bowler Axar Patel (2-13), who claimed the wickets of Glenn Maxwell and Tim David, had bowled two "brilliant" overs, that were "probably the difference in the game".

Rohit hails returning Bumrah

Jasprit Bumrah made a timely appearance in India colours, with the T20 World Cup in sight. Sidelined recently by a back injury, the star fast bowler satisfied captain Rohit as he took 1-23 from two overs.

"Coming back after a couple of months from a back injury can be tricky. We've got to give more time to him. it was good to see him on the park. That was important for us, and he got a crucial wicket," Rohit said.

"Slowly and steadily, he's coming back to his rhythm. It was good to see him bowling full throttle, but as a team we're not going to analyse this too much, we just want to let him come and enjoy his game."

Rohit Sharma has confirmed KL Rahul is the first-choice opener for India ahead of the T20 World Cup, though former captain Virat Kohli is an option.

India face Australia, who host the upcoming World Cup as reigning champions, in a three-match T20I series starting on Tuesday.

With Rohit rested for India's final Asia Cup match, Kohli filled in at the top of the order and plundered an unbeaten 122 from 61 balls to help seal an emphatic 101-run win over Afghanistan.

Kohli's knock is the highest score by an Indian player in men's T20Is, overtaking Rohit's 118 against Sri Lanka in December 2017, while it also ended his 1,020-day wait for an international century.

Ahead of the first match in Mohali, Rohit told a press conference: "It's always nice to have options available to you. It is very important when you go in a tournament like a World Cup.

"You want the flexibility. We only talk about it, but this is actually what it means. You want your players to be in their best shape, batting in any position and so on.

"For us, when we try and do something new, it doesn't mean that is permanent. We understand the quality of all the players and what they bring to us. We do understand that, but it is an option for us. 

"We will keep that in mind that since we haven't taken a third opener, [Kohli] can obviously open. He opens for his franchise and has done really well. We saw that in the last match, and we are quite happy with what we saw. I don't think we will experiment for that position a lot."

Rahul struck 62 in India's win over Afghanistan, though he has not scored a century in the shortest format since 2018.

However, he remains Rohit's first pick.

"KL Rahul will play the World Cup, and open," Rohit affirmed. "His performances for India tend to go unnoticed. He is a very important player for India. If you look at his record over the last two, three years, it is very good.

"I don't think it is right to not consider one performance because someone else has performed. There is no confusion. We are very clear about what KL brings to us.

"He is a very, very important and quality player and a match-winner as well. His presence at the top is very, very crucial for us."

The West Indies suffered a crushing 59-run defeat to India in Lauderhill on Saturday, falling to an unassailable 1-3 series deficit in the process.

After winning the toss and electing to field first, the hosts felt the wrath of the Indians from the outset with openers Rohit Sharma and Suryakumar Yadav speeding to 53 without loss after just 4.4 overs before Sharma was dismissed for a 16-ball 33 including two fours and three sixes.

Yadav’s dismissal for 24 in the sixth over then paired Deepak Hooda and Rishabh Pant who added a further 47 before Hooda’s wicket fell for 21 in the 12^th over to leave the score on 108-3.

Pant went on to top-score with 44 before his dismissal in the 15^th over. Sanju Samson (30 not out), Axar Patel (20 not out) and Dinesh Karthik (6) then combined to put the finishing touches on a fine effort with the bat for India, ending 191-5 from their 20 overs.

Alzarri Joseph was the pick of the bowlers for the Windies with 2-29 from his four overs.

The hosts then struggled throughout their reply thanks to some excellent bowling by India and some questionable decision-making by the batsmen.

Brandon King (13) and Kyle Mayers (14) both got starts but fell cheaply while captain Nicholas Pooran sprinted to 24 off just eight balls before he was run out after a mix-up with Mayers.

Rovman Powell with a quick 24, Shimron Hetmyer (19) and Jason Holder (13) were the only other batsmen to reach double-figures as the Windies struggled to a paltry 132 all-out after 19.1 overs.

Arshdeep Singh led the way for the Indians with 3-12 from 3.1 overs while he got good support from Avesh Khan (2-17) and Ravi Bishnoi (2-27).

Rohit Sharma made T20I history as India maintained their sensational white-ball form with a 68-run victory in the series opener against West Indies. 

India won the ODI series 3-0 and continued in the same vein in the shortest format as Rohit claimed possession of a pair of records. 

He led the way with 64 off 44 balls, surpassing Martin Guptill for the most runs in men's T20I cricket when he took his innings into the 20s. 

Rohit's half-century saw him take outright possession of the record for the most scores of 50-plus in T20Is. 

This made it 31 such scores for Rohit, who laid the foundation for Dinesh Karthik to power India to 190-6 in the closing overs with 41 not out from just 19 deliveries. 

The Windies struck 22 off the first eight balls of their reply, but a strong start quickly gave way to a collapse. 

Nicholas Pooran's side lost seven wickets for 64 runs as India's strength in depth with the ball came to the fore with Ravichandran Ashwin the star of the show. 

Akeal Hosein (11) provided some lower-order resistance that was always in vain and was ended by Arshdeep Singh's yorker as India wrapped up a dominant win.  

Record-breaker Rohit

Rohit now has 3,443 T20I runs to his name having gone past Guptill on 3,399. 

He had been level with Virat Kohli, rested for this tour, with 30 scores of 50 or more in T20Is but broke the tie and went top of the leaderboard with his first 50 since November 2021 against New Zealand. 

Spinners frustrate Windies

Seven Windies batters reached double figures, including tailender Keemo Paul, who made the margin of defeat more respectable with his 19 not out after the game was ended as a contest. 

But it was a case of too many players failing to build on starts as India's spinners controlled the scoring and took regular wickets, Ashwin bowling 13 dot balls and giving up only two boundaries in his 2-22.    

The West Indies have now lost seven consecutive white ball games after going down by 68 runs to India in the first of five T20 Internationals at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy in Tarouba on Friday.

West Indian captain Nicholas Pooran won the toss and elected to field first.

India’s opening pair of returning captain Rohit Sharma and Suryakumar Yadav got the ball rolling, putting on a partnership of 44 before Yadav was dismissed by Jason Holder for a quick 16-ball 24.

Captain Sharma provided a steady head for the Indians throughout the majority of the innings as he lost partners Shreyas Iyer (0), Rishabh Pant (14) and Hardik Pandya (1) before eventually being dismissed in the 15^th over for a top score of 64 to leave the tourists 127-5.

They eventually got up to 190-6 off their 20 overs thanks to cameos from Ravindra Jadeja (16) and Ravichandran Ashwin (13) as well as a brilliant closing effort of 41 from just 19 balls including four fours and two sixes from Dinesh Karthik.

Left-arm spinner Akeal Hosein was brilliant for the hosts with an economical 1-14 from his four overs while opening pacer Obed McCoy took 1-30 from his four.

The West Indian reply got off to a fast start thanks to openers Kyle Mayers and Shamarh Brooks as the pair sped to 22-0 in the second over before Mayers fell for 15 to pacer Arshdeep Singh.

The Windies then tried to gamble, sending Jason Holder up the order to bat at three but this move fell flat as he was next to go, bowled by Ravindra Jadeja for a duck.

The innings then ground to a virtual halt as Brooks (20), Nicholas Pooran (18), Rovman Powell (14), Shimron Hetmyer (14), Akeal Hosein (11) and Odean Smith (0) all perished to, eventually, leave the Windies needing 90 off 21 balls for victory.

Keemo Paul and Alzarri Joseph then finished not out on 19 and 5, respectively, to end the innings on 122-8, 68 runs short.

It was a balanced bowling effort by the Indians with Ravichandran Ashwin (2-22 off four overs), Arshdeep Singh (2-24 off four overs) and Ravi Bishnoi (2-26 off four overs) all contributing well.

Rohit Sharma returns to lead India when a five-match Twenty20 International series against West Indies starts on Friday.

India's captain was rested for the 3-0 one-day international whitewash of the Windies, but will be back in action at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy,

Shikhar Dhawan skippered the tourists as his fellow opener was given a rest for the 50-over contests.

Rohit will expect India to maintain their momentum when the series gets under way in Tarouba, Trinidad, with the T20 World Cup in Australia on the horizon.

India have won five and drawn one of their past six series in the shortest format, beating England most recently.

They are top of the rankings and have shown their strength in depth amid a hectic schedule.

Jasprit Bumrah and Yuzvendra Chahal have been rested for this series along with out-of-sorts former captain Virat Kohli, but the likes of Ravichandran Ashwin and Kuldeep Yadav are back.

West Indies beat Bangladesh 2-0 in their last T20I series, but India consigned them to a 3-0 clean sweep in February.

Nicholas Pooran has endured a difficult start to his tenure as Windies white-ball skipper and his side face another big challenge in a series that includes two matches in Florida.

Yadav primed for more heroics

Suryakumar Yadav made a match-winning 117 when India beat England in the T20I decider at Trent Bridge.

With fierce competition in the middle order and Kohli absent, Yadav will see this series as another opportunity to cement his spot.

Windies batters must show consistency

Despite being beaten by India in all three ODIs, West Indies twice posted over 300.

They must show a consistency that has been lacking as they build towards the World Cup, led by Pooran, who has certainly not been short of runs as skipper and was man of the series in the T20I series success over the Tigers.