IND vs WI 2023: 3 moments that created a buzz among fans in 5th T20I

Team India suffered a loss in the fifth T20I against West Indies (WI) at Lauderhill, Florida, as the Men from the Caribbean won by eight wickets to take the series 3-2.

It was a rather brave decision to bat first from captain Hardik Pandya as India had chased down the target of 179 quite comfortably on the same ground just a day ago. However, they could only post 165/9 in their 20 overs and it proved to be not good enough.

WI bowlers had their plans well in place and Nicholas Pooran and Brandon King did the job with the bat to ensure that it was a famous win for the hosts. After the disappointment of not qualifying for the World Cup, this would certainly give the WI fans something to cheer about.

On that note, let's take a look at three moments from the game that grabbed the attention of fans on social media:

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#3 Shubman Gill not reviewing his LBW call

After scores of 3, 7 and 6 in the first three T20Is, Shubman Gill scored a sensational 77 in the fourth game. Expectations were thus high for him to replicate his good knock on the same ground. However, he would be disappointed to have missed out on the opportunity.

The Men in Blue lost Yashasvi Jaiswal early and it was down to Shubman Gill to ensure the visitors got good returns from the powerplay. When the right-hander tried to sweep the ball and was trapped by Akeal Hosein, the umpire adjudged him out and Gill felt it was plumb.

However, the ball tracking showed that the ball would be missing the stumps. Had Gill taken the review, he could have survived and perhaps scored big again. Fans were disappointed to see the opener not even discuss properly with the non-striker about taking a review.

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#2 Roston Chase's sensational catch to dismiss Tilak Varma

The situation for Indian batting was similar to that in the third T20I and it seemed like Tilak Varma and Suryakumar Yadav would have another big partnership to take their team to a competitive total. However, Roston Chase's piece of brilliance ensured that wasn't the case for WI.

Tilak tried to just place the ball towards long off for a single, but could only lob it to the right of Chase. The off-spinner dove and took a one-handed stunner to dismiss the in-form left-hander for 27. That wicket seemed to shift the momentum decisively in favor of the hosts.

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#1 Nicholas Pooran going after Hardik Pandya

Hardik Pandya had indirectly challenged West Indies star Nicholas Pooran to go for his high-risk shots during the post-match presentation of the third T20I. While the duo didn't face off in the fourth game, Pooran ensured he took full toll on the opposition captain in the series decider.

By hitting two back-to-back sixes over deep mid-wicket off Hardik's bowling, Pooran in a way probably responded to the challenge given to him. After the game, the left-hander also posted a cryptic story on Instagram where he was seen showing the 'mouth is shut' gesture, indirectly suggesting that he let his bat do the talking.