West Indies beat India by 24 runs in the fourth T20 international, drawing the five-match series level at 2-2 and turning the final game in Bengaluru into a winner-takes-series contest. Shai Hope made an unbeaten 102 in a West Indies total of 247 for three before Keemo Paul took five wickets as India were dismissed for 223.
The result matters beyond one high-scoring evening. India had an opportunity to settle the series, while West Indies needed both a commanding batting display and enough control with the ball to survive India's chase. They found both, with two different match-winners shaping the game.
Hope built the innings India could not contain
Hope's unbeaten hundred gave West Indies a stable centre while the scoring rate stayed high. According to the ICC match report, it was his second T20I century of the series and his fourth hundred of the tour when the two one-day internationals are included.
That record explains why the innings was more than a sudden burst of form. Hope has repeatedly converted starts on this tour, and the fourth T20I showed the value of batting through an innings in the shortest format. A set batter can choose match-ups, absorb a quieter over and then attack without forcing every partner to begin at the same tempo.
West Indies finished at 247 for three, a total that required India to score at more than 12 runs per over from the beginning. On a good batting surface that target was possible, but it offered almost no space for a slow powerplay or a middle-overs stall.
Paul changed the chase with wickets, not containment
India reached 223, close enough to show the target was not imaginary but far enough behind to reflect Paul's impact. His five-wicket haul meant West Indies did not have to rely only on defending boundaries. Taking wickets interrupted partnerships and continually brought new batters to the crease with the required rate rising.
In a chase of this size, economy rate can be deceptive. A bowler may concede runs and still decide the match by removing batters capable of sustaining the required pace. Paul's spell delivered that kind of value: West Indies exchanged runs for breakthroughs and prevented India from carrying a settled partnership into the closing overs.
What the 2-2 score changes before Bengaluru
The fifth T20I is scheduled for October 17 in Bengaluru. With the series even, neither side can treat it as an experimental dead rubber. West Indies have proof that their batting ceiling can pressure India, while India have less time to correct how they bowled to Hope and how they managed a chase above 240.
Selection will be one of the immediate questions. India must decide whether the balance that took them to 223 provides enough bowling control. West Indies, meanwhile, will judge whether to keep the same combination after a win built on a specialist batter and a wicket-taking seamer.
The series has also shifted since MatchUpWorld's earlier India-West Indies injury update. Availability remains important, but the decisive issue now is tactical: which team can adapt after both have seen the other's strongest routes to victory.
The decider's key contest
The most important contest is likely to come before the final five overs. India need to disrupt Hope before he controls the innings; West Indies need early wickets so India's hitters are not attacking with a full platform behind them. Bengaluru's conditions may favour scoring, making timing and match-ups more valuable than a simple plan to defend a par total.
Fans following the wider international calendar can also see why high-profile bilateral matches matter alongside tournament preparation. Demand for major events remains strong, as reflected in the 2027 World Cup ticket ballot response, but a close series creates its own urgency when every adjustment is tested two days later.
West Indies have not won the series yet, and India have not lost it. The fourth T20I established the terms of the decider: Hope is the batter India must solve, Paul has become a threat India cannot simply play around, and another large total may still require wickets rather than defensive bowling to protect it.
Sources: ICC match report, Cricket West Indies.
