Rahul's unbeaten 129 and Rohit's 92 take India to 351 for 7 against West Indies

KL Rahul played the defining innings of the third and final ODI against West Indies, finishing unbeaten on 129 off 87 balls as India made 351 for 7 from their 50 overs. West Indies now need 352 to win the match and the three-match series. The contest is being played at the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International Cricket Stadium in New Chandigarh.

Captain Shubman Gill won the toss and elected to bat, sending West Indies into the field. Rohit Sharma gave the innings its early base with a fluent 92. Rahul then took charge from No. 5, hitting 10 fours and 6 sixes.

He walked in with India placed at 141 for 3 and only 25 overs left. Rahul started carefully, and he needed to, because wickets kept falling around him. He refused to be rattled, and he steadily moved the total beyond 300. His fifty took 42 balls and his hundred came in 80 balls, the ninth ODI century of his career. Once he had the milestone, he opened up. In the last five overs he lifted India past 350. The score ended on 351, and 129 is the highest he has made in this format. During the knock he also went past 10,000 runs in international cricket. Rahul and Gurnoor Brar added 61 for the eighth wicket, though Brar's share of that was just 8.

It was the second fastest of his ODI hundreds. The quickest remains the one against the Netherlands in the 2023 ODI World Cup, which came off 62 balls.

His 129 also ranks third among the biggest scores by Indian batters at No. 5. Yuvraj Singh heads that list with 139 against Australia in Sydney in 2004. MS Dhoni is next with 134 against England in Cuttack in 2017. Rahul's effort in New Chandigarh in 2026 follows those two, and Dhoni's 124 against Australia in Nagpur in 2009 is fourth.

India went in with Gill leading a side that also had Kohli and Gaikwad in the top order, with Rahul keeping wicket. The rest of the line-up was Nitish Kumar Reddy, Naman Dhir, Anshul Kamboj, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj and Brar.

West Indies picked John Campbell, Jewel Andrew, Shai Hope, Amir Jangoo and Sherfane Rutherford for the batting, with Keemo Paul, Matthew Forde, Alzarri Joseph, Gudakesh Motie, Jayden Seales and Vitalie Lawes completing the side.