West Indies captain joins Virat Kohli and Suryakumar Yadav in an elite list as Keemo Paul's five wickets help visitors level the series
Shai Hope is having a dream tour of India. Four centuries across two formats, and now a historic record previously held by the legendary Chris Gayle.
The West Indies captain smashed an unbeaten 102 off just 50 balls in the fourth T20I in Hyderabad on Wednesday, becoming the first batter from his country to score three centuries in T20 internationals.
Hope surpassed Gayle and Evin Lewis, who have two T20I hundreds each, to become West Indies' leading century maker in the format.
His magnificent innings helped West Indies post 247 for three before Keemo Paul claimed five wickets to restrict India to 223, securing a 24 run victory and levelling the five match series at 2-2.
Four centuries on one tour
Hope has been in remarkable form throughout the tour.
After scoring two centuries in the ODI series, he struck an unbeaten 102 off just 45 balls in Ranchi, helping West Indies complete their highest successful run chase in T20I history.
Five days later, he produced another masterclass in Hyderabad.
Interestingly, all three of Hope's T20I centuries have been unbeaten scores of exactly 102.
His latest innings featured nine sixes and four boundaries as he continued his remarkable form against India.
Joins Kohli and Suryakumar in elite list
Hope's century also saw him join Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav and Pakistan's Sahibzada Farhan in an exclusive club.
All four captains have registered three scores of 50 or more in a bilateral T20I series involving Test playing nations.
Kohli achieved the feat against England in 2021, Suryakumar against New Zealand in 2026 and Farhan against Sri Lanka earlier this year.
Hope, however, became the first captain to achieve the milestone in an away bilateral T20I series.
He also became only the second West Indies batter after Nicholas Pooran to register three scores of 50 or more in a bilateral T20I series.
Another Chris Gayle record equalled
Hope also equalled Gayle's record for the most scores of 50 or more by a West Indies batter in T20 internationals.
Both have registered 16 such scores.
While Gayle finished with two centuries and 14 half centuries, Hope now has three hundreds and 13 fifties.
The West Indies captain also crossed 2,000 T20I runs, becoming only the fourth batter from his country to reach the milestone.
Keemo Paul completes the job
Hope's century gave West Indies a massive total to defend, and Paul ensured his captain's efforts would not go to waste.
The pacer claimed five wickets, while Shamar Springer also produced crucial breakthroughs as India's chase ended on 223.
The 24 run victory means West Indies have taken the world champions into a series decider in Bengaluru on Saturday.
For Hope, this has already become a tour to remember.
Four centuries, multiple records broken and two T20I victories against India.
And there is still one more match to play.