• Source:JND
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India skipper Hardik Pandya criticised himself after the 3-2 T20I series loss against West Indies at Lauderhill, Florida on Monday. The all-rounder admitted his 18-ball 14 affected the team's batting approach and only took them to 165/9 in 20 overs.

India lost the fifth T20I of the series by eight wickets and it is the first time that Men in Blue lost the five-match T20I series.

"We lost the momentum when I came in and couldn't capitalize on the situation. I believe we gonna challenge ourselves. We try to get better. In hindsight, it is fine. We don't need to explain much. I know how the boys are within the group. We have enough time to figure out. Losing is good at times. On the positive side, we have done a lot of learnings. The boys showed character," Hardik Pandya said in the post-match conference.

Chasing 166, opener Brandon King smashed 85 off 55 balls including six sixes and five fours while Nicholas Pooran scored 47 to guide them to a comfortable win with 12 balls to spare.

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"Credit to them. They kept coming and tried something new. It is part of the process. It is what I feel at that moment. If I see a situation, I generally prefer something that comes to mind," Pandya said.

For India, Suryakumar Yadav top-scored with 61 runs while Tilak Varma contributed 27 runs off 18 balls after they opted to bat first.

Pandya backed his teammates and lauded the efforts chipped in by youngsters in the series. He is also hopeful of India's bigger aspirations in the T20 World Cup 2024, which will be played in the West Indies and the United States of America.

"No rocket science, just my gut feel. Every youngster who is coming in, is showing character. I can't be more happy when I see a youngster comes in and puts his hand up. A big thank you to everyone. The T20 World Cup would be here. There would be bigger numbers then," the all-rounder said.