Powell became the third West Indian man, after Chris Gayle and Evin Lewis, to score a T20 international century, as the hosts posted a mammoth 224-5 after being inserted by stand-in England captain Moeen Ali, who was deputising for Eoin Morgan (quad).

Powell shared a third-wicket stand of 122 from just 67 balls with Nicholas Pooran (70 off 43) to leave England with a daunting chase in Barbados - but Tom Banton (73 off 39) and T20I debutant Phil Salt (57 off 24) kept the tourists' hopes alive as they crunched six and five maximums respectively.

• Scorecard: West Indies vs England, 3rd T20I
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Banton fell in the 13th over but Salt then took over the heavy scoring and England still had a slender chance of victory when he hit back-to-back sixes off Romario Shepherd in the final over - the requirement 24 from four balls at that stage, meaning four more sixes were needed.

However, Salt was then bowled by a yorker next ball and England ended up on 204-9, with the away side now needing to win the final two matches, in Barbados on Saturday and Sunday, to claim a series victory.

England picked three debutants in a much-changed team on Wednesday night, with Lancashire star Salt joined in the side by Yorkshire batter Harry Brook and Sussex all-rounder George Garton.

Salt dominated a stand of 45 from 28 balls with Brook (10) for the sixth wicket after Banton departed with England needing 96 from 45 balls.

Salt started to pepper the boundary as the target became 41 from 12 balls, only for a two-wicket 19th over, during which Sheldon Cottrell shipped only three runs, to leave England needing 38 runs from the last.

Shepherd conceded two wides at the start of the final over to bring the tourists back into it and when Salt then slammed the bowler for successive maximums a stunning England win was still a possibility - before Shepherd redeemed himself.

Powell was the star performer for West Indies on the day, mixing brutal hitting with a deftness of touch as he scored his first hundred in any form of T20 cricket.

The 28-year-old joined forces with Pooran at 48-2 in the sixth over when Liam Livingstone - back in the England side after illness - dismissed Shai Hope (4), with Garton earlier having castled Brandon King (10) with the fifth delivery he bowled in international cricket.

Garton (1-57), Livingstone (1-42), Tymal Mills (1-52) and Moeen (1-14 from one over) recorded eye-watering figures as Powell and Pooran smashed a combined 15 sixes and eight fours, with Adil Rashid (1-25) and Reece Topley (1-30) the pick of an attack formed entirely of spinners and left-arm seamers.

Sam Billings' illness meant he was one of five players to miss out - the wicketkeeper joining Morgan and the rested Saqib Mahmood, Chris Jordan and Liam Dawson on the sidelines as Salt, Garton and Brook debuted, Livingstone returned and Mills was recalled.

Billings' absence meant Banton kept wicket and he did that job tidily enough but it was with the bat where he excelled, scoring a 29-ball, second T20I fifty and going on to hit a career-best T20I score, trumping the 71 he managed against Pakistan at Emirates Old Trafford in August 2020.

Banton led England's charge as Jason Roy (19 off 16), James Vince (16 off 9), Moeen (0) and Livingstone (11 off 9) came and went - Livingstone still seemingly troubled by the illness that had kept him out of the first two matches of the series.

Like Roy and Vince, Banton eventually departed one ball after striking a six but then up stepped Salt, playing his first T20I after three ODI appearances against Pakistan over the summer, to take the game deep on an island he knows well having spent part of his childhood in Barbados.

Salt's quick-fire innings showed his strength and skill - but it was Powell's that ultimately proved the difference between the sides in a game of 428 runs and 31 sixes.

Moeen: Banton was outstanding

England captain Moeen Ali: "We were done a little bit with Morgs going down and playing three debutants but they played really well. A fantastic partnership took the game away from us but I'm proud of the way the boys batted. We've got guys putting their hands up - Bants (Banton) was outstanding, which is great for his confidence going forward."

West Indies skipper Kieron Pollard: "Kudos to Rovman (Powell). He came in and took his chance. We had a good discussion about our batting and what we wanted to do. It was a complete game and I'm happy for the guys. The challenge is coming back again, we want to replicate that performance."

What's next?

The West Indies vs England T20 series comes to a conclusion in Bridgetown, Barbados this weekend with the fourth game on Saturday (8pm UK time) and the fifth on Sunday (8pm UK time).

The Women's Ashes, meanwhile, continues with the standalone Test match in Canberra (Thursday-Sunday). Australia led the multi-format series 4-2 after the three T20 internationals, with the hosts winning the first game by nine wickets before the second and third matches were washed out by rain.

Sticking in Australia, and the Big Bash League final is live on Sky Sports Cricket from 7.30am on Friday as Sydney Sixers look for a third successive title when they face Perth Scorchers at Marvel Stadium in Melbourne.