Bengaluru: West Indies captain Shai Hope believes his team has made significant progress despite ending its five-match T20I series against India in a 2–2 draw. Hope said success should not be measured only by series victories, pointing instead to the improvement shown by his players throughout the contest.
The series concluded on October 17, 2026, at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru, where persistent rain forced the fifth and deciding T20I to be abandoned. The two captains, India’s Shreyas Iyer and West Indies’ Shai Hope, shared the series trophy after the washout. Hope highlights West Indies’ progress
Reflecting on the series, Hope said the team’s performances demonstrated how far the players had progressed as a unit. He acknowledged that the West Indies had not won a bilateral series in India for more than two decades, making the competitive showing against the hosts a meaningful step.
Hope stressed that success does not necessarily depend on winning a series. For him, the improvement of individual players and the team’s collective performance were important indicators of development.
The West Indies captain’s assessment came after his side pushed India through a closely contested series. Although the visitors did not secure an outright series victory, the 2–2 result offered encouragement as they continued to build their T20I combination.
Rain prevents a result in the fifth T20I
The final match in Bengaluru was affected by rain from the outset. After a delay of more than two hours, the contest was reduced to nine overs per side.
India managed to reach 118 for five in 7.4 overs before rain returned and prevented the West Indies from starting their chase. With no further play possible, the match was abandoned and the series ended in a draw.
The result denied both teams an opportunity to claim the series outright in the deciding game. Instead, India and the West Indies shared the trophy after four completed matches had produced a competitive contest.
West Indies find encouragement in team performances
Hope’s comments reflected the importance of assessing a team’s progress beyond the final result. The captain pointed to the way his players competed throughout the series and the development they showed against a strong Indian side.
He also praised the contributions of the West Indies bowling group, highlighting Shamar Springer, Keemo Paul and Roston Chase among the bowlers who featured prominently in the series’ wicket-taking statistics.
The performances offered the West Indies positives to take away from the tour, even though the team could not convert the drawn series into a bilateral series victory in India.
A shared trophy after a competitive series
The 2–2 outcome brought the series to a close without a winner. India and the West Indies had both produced strong performances across the first four matches, while the rain-affected final game left the contest unresolved.
For Hope, the result did not erase the progress made by his side. His message was that development, consistency and the improvement of players also matter when evaluating a team’s performance.
The West Indies will therefore leave the series with a shared trophy and the encouragement of having competed closely against India. Hope’s assessment underlined his belief that the team’s growth is an important measure of success, even when a series victory remains out of reach.