Watch: Indian team's dugout gives a standing ovation as Suryakumar Yadav hits his third T20I hundred

Indian middle-order batter Suryakumar Yadav continued his brilliant form as he slammed his third hundred in T20I cricket in the ongoing third T20I against Sri Lanka in Rajkot.

The 32-year-old came to bat at the second drop and stayed unbeaten at 112 off 51 balls, laced with nine sixes, to propel India to 228-5 in 20 overs.

Suryakumar's hundred came in the first ball of the 19th over with a single to deep cover off Kasun Rajitha's bowling and celebrated as the dugout gave him a standing ovation.

It was the third time the number one T20I batter had reached three figures in the format after slamming 117 (55) against England in Manchester and 111* (51) against New Zealand in Mount Maunganui.

The hundred off 45 balls in Rajkot was also the fastest for India in T20Is.

With the series leveled 1-1, Indian captain Hardik Pandya chose to bat first as the hosts went ahead with an unchanged side.

Sri Lanka, by contrast, made one change, drafting Avishka Fernando for Bhanuka Rajapaksa.

After Rajitha dismissed Ishan Kishan cheaply in the first over, Rahul Tripathi blazed away with a 16-ball 35, while Shubman Gill chipped in with a 36-ball 46 after two single-figure scores in the first two games.

"Really happy with the way the innings went" - Suryakumar Yadav

Suryakumar Yadav. (Image Credits: Twitter)

At the mid-innings break, the Mumbai-born player felt the batters had to show faith in Pandya after he chose to bat first.

He also underlined that the shots he played aren't anything different, stating:

I'm really happy with the way the innings went. Captain winning the toss and batting first showed faith in the batters, few shots are pre-determined, but these are the shots I've been playing over the last year and I'm not doing anything different. The 2022 form is gone, it's a fresh start in 2023 and I hope to continue doing well. It's a good pitch, nice bounce and a lush outfield."

Suryakumar chipped in with seven and 51 in the first two games in Mumbai and Pune, respectively.