A brilliant century from Hayley Matthews and miraculous death bowling from Deandra Dottin led the West Indies Women to a stunning 3-run victory over New Zealand to open the ICC Women’s World Cup at Mount Maunganui on Friday.
In a wonderful advert for women's cricket, the all-around entertaining affair got the thrilling ending it merited. With the West Indies needing to defend just 6 runs in the last over, Dottin, who has hardly been seen with the ball over the last few months, stepped up to take 2 for 2, and also effected a run-out, to finally wrap up brave New Zealand resistance in her only over of the match.
The result meant the West Indies had successfully defended 259 for 9, their third-highest total ever recorded at the tournament.
Earlier, a brilliant 119 of 128 from Matthews, who was named the player of the match, set the stage for the West Indies triumph. Unexpectedly returning to the top of the order after Rashada Williams was ruled out of the match due to concussion protocol, Matthews hit 16 fours and a six, dispatching New Zealand’s bowlers to all parts of the ground while proving to be the stable catalyst the West Indies needed.
Dottin, who opened with Matthews, had promised a similar type of performance but was sent packing after hitting three fours and skying another attempt to Jess Kerr after playing across the line off Lea Tahuhu.
With Kycia Knight then departing for just 5, Matthews formed a crucial 66-run partnership with captain Stafanie Taylor, which helped the West Indies reach 100 at a steady five runs an over. The partnership was broken when Taylor was caught behind after clipping off Tahuhu.
It was, however, one only of three partnerships Matthews would be involved in as she also paired with Shemaine Campbelle and Chedean Nation to glue the team’s innings together.
Matthews was eventually dismissed going after Kerr as Hannah Rowe held on to the catch in the deep. Nation's 46-ball 36 and then Anisa Mohammed's six-ball 11, however, added valuable runs for the team at the end of the innings. Tahuhu was the pick of the New Zealand bowlers with 3 for 57, while Kerr claimed 2 for 43.
In pursuit, Sophie Devine struck a magnificent century to keep New Zealand's chase on track, for the most part, and Katey Martin and Kerr's quickfire 40-run partnership brought it down to run-a-ball for the last over before the timely intervention of Dottin.
West Indies Women lost their final ODI by six wickets to South Africa’s Women in Johannesburg on Sunday and with it the series 2-1.
Deandra Dottin was player of the match as the West Indies Women enjoyed a victorious start to their ICC Women’s World Cup Qualifying campaign in Zimbabwe on Tuesday.
Dottin top-scored with 73 from 87 balls to help the Windies chase down their target of 160 to defeat Ireland by six wickets.
After captain Stafanie Taylor won the toss and elected to field first, the West Indies bowled out Ireland for 159 in 43 overs.
Anissa Mohammed was the pick of the bowlers for the Caribbean side, taking 3-40 from her 10 overs.
She was supported by Hayley Matthews who took 2-20 from her 10.
Shamilia Connell took 2-33 from her 10 and Taylor took 2-15 from her 3 overs.
Gaby Lewis top-scored for the Irish with 36 from 58 balls.
The Windies Women then needed only 39.3 overs to chase their target with Dottin getting 73 and Taylor finishing not out on 41.
The West Indies and Sri Lanka both have two points, having won their first game, with the Windies at the top of the group due to a superior net run rate.
Those two will face off next on Saturday.
West Indies Women head into the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup Qualifier on a winning note after defeating Thailand women by 151 runs in their warm-up match at the Sunrisers Sports Club ground in Harare.
West Indies Women posted 230-6 from their 50 overs, with Thailand Women replying with 79 all out in 36.3 overs.
The West Indies Women owed their score to Deandra Dottin, who scored 101 and Hayley Matthews, who contributed with 57.
Onnicha Kamchomphu took 2-26 while Suleeporn Laomi returned figures of 2-37.
Thailand was never in the hunt, despite Chanida Sutthiruang’s 37. Sornnarin Tippoch was the next best scorer with nine as Shakera Selman took 2-1 and Aaliyah Alleyne 2-9 proved too much for the opposing batters.
Naturally, Head Coach Courtney Walsh was pleased with the outcome ahead of the first match on November 23 against Ireland.
“It was good to get in a practice match in Zimbabwe to get accustomed to the conditions. The ladies went out and did what was required,” he said.
“Deandra and Hayley had good knocks, so it’s good to see the runs continuing from over from Pakistan. We gave all the bowlers a chance to get a feel of the pitch here in Zimbabwe. It was important to get match practice as Papua New Guinea pulled out so we are short one game.”
Walsh believes winning the series against Pakistan 3-0 and overwhelming Thailand will boost the confidence of his players.
“Once you keep winning you’re going to keep having confidence. We left Pakistan pretty confidently and it’s important to keep that momentum and not taking anything for granted,” he said.
“Obviously, this was just a practice game but the win is important for team morale and then we have a few days before we start the competition, so it’s good to get that win under our belts.”
The West Indies Women will continue their training schedule for the next three days before they bow into World Cup qualifying action.
Player of the Match Hayley Matthews took four wickets and Shamilia Connell, three, including a double-wicket maiden as the bowlers came to the rescue of the West Indies Women in the second ODI match against Pakistan Women in Karachi on Thursday.
Defending 153, the West Indies Women bowled Pakistan Women out for 116 inside 40 overs to win by 37 runs and take an unassailable 2-0 lead in their three-match ODI series.
Omaima Sohail top scored with 27 and Javeria Khan scored 24 but Matthews took 4-29 from her nine overs and Connell 3-18 from 9.2 overs as Pakistan Women slipped from 67-3 in the 25th over losing their last seven wickets for 49 runs.
The hosts lost their last four wickets for just five runs with Connell being the main destroyer late with a double-wicket maiden in the 38th over before Matthews picked up her fourth wicket in the 39th. Connell then returned to wrap up proceedings when she bowled Anam Amin for a duck with the second ball of the 40th over.
Earlier, having been sent to bat by Pakistan, the West Indies were bowled out for 153 in 45.4 overs.
Deandra Dottin, who scored a career-best 132 in the first ODI, top-scored with 34. Stafanie Taylor (23), Matthews (26), and Shemaine Campbelle (23) all got starts but failed to carry on against the bowling of Amin 2-21, Fatima Sana 2-19 and Sohail 2-25.
The West Indies are using the series as a warm-up for the ICC World Cup qualifiers set to bowl off in Zimbabwe later this month.
Deandra Dottin scored a career-best 132 as the West Indies Women marched to a 45-run victory over Pakistan Women on Monday to open their three-match ODI tour.
Player-of-the-Match Dottin, who hit 18 fours and two sixes in her 146-ball innings, got support from Hayley Matthews, who scored 57 and took three wickets for the West Indies. Together they put on 119 runs for the third wicket after the West Indies had lost Rashada Williams for 15 and Captain Stafanie Taylor for six to leave the visitors on 72-2.
Dottin would also share in a 44-run fourth-wicket partnership with Shemaine Campbelle, who made 23.
Left-arm spinner Anan Amin returned figures of 5-35 for Pakistan.
Chasing 254 for victory, Pakistan were in early trouble at 51-3 after Shakera Selman removed Sidra Ameen for two and Ayesha Zafar for 17 and Anisa Mohammed took the wicket of Muneeba Ali for 28.
However, Kainat Imtiaz (24) and Iram Javed (40) shared in a 57-run partnership and Aliya Riaz and Captain Sidra Nawaz, stitched together a sixth-wicket partnership of 43, to keep the West Indies bowling at bay.
However, they were unable to score freely and fell well behind the required rate of scoring as Hayley Matthews 3-31 and Selman 2-35 tightened the screws. Riaz was eventually run out for 46, effectively ending any chance of a victory as the hosts ended on 208-9.
Lizelle Lee produced another match-winning performance as South Africa Women earned a comfortable victory in the opening match of the CG Insurance One-Day International Series. The powerful opener top-scored with a purposeful 91 not out as the Proteas easily reached 157-2 off 39.3 overs. This was in reply to West Indies 153 off 46.4 overs.
Lee’s innings earned her the CG Insurance Player of the Match award following up on her CG Insurance Player of the Series award in the recent T20 Internationals. The experienced opener made her 21st half-century at this level and laid the perfect platform for the run-chase as she faced 127 balls and hit 10 fours and a six. She added 88 in 22 overs with Laura Wolvaardt who again looked in good touch before she was bowled by Anisa Mohammed for 35, which came off 65 deliveries.
The West Indies had one other success when Sune Luus was trapped leg-before wicket to left-arm spinner Qiana Joseph without scoring.
In the first half of the match, West Indies found the going challenging. Left-hander Kycia Knight top-scored with 39 off 78 balls, but was run out by a superb throw from Mignon duPreez at deep square leg.
Deandra Dottin, looked set for a significant score as she raced to 38 off 36 balls, but was well caught at long-off by duPreez, which gave leg-spinner Dane van Niekerk her first wicket. The South Africa skipper ended with 2-23 off her 10 overs to put pressure on the West Indies middle and lower order.
The two teams will return to the same venue on Friday for the second match of the five-match rubber. First ball is 10 am (9 am Jamaica Time).
West Indies Women finished the CG Insurance One Day International Series against Pakistan Women with a 3-2 series victory, despite losing the fifth and final match by 22 runs via the Duckworth/Lewis/Stern Method on Sunday.
Player of the match Shamilla Connell took three wickets and two wickets from Aaliyah Alleyne helped West Indies Women to a 10-run victory over Pakistan Women at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in Antigua on Wednesday.
Chasing 137 for victory after the West Indies made 136 for 6 from their 20 overs, Connell and Alleyne combined to restrict Pakistan to 126 for 6 despite an unbeaten 45 from Ayesha Naseem and 24 not out from Fatima Sana.
Together, the pair mounted an unbroken seventh-wicket partnership of 69 from 45 balls, rescuing Pakistan from a precarious 57-6.
Connell did the early damage bowling both openers, Javeria Rauf and Captain Javeria Khan for 5 and 7, respectively, with only 14 runs on the board. Hayley Matthews made it 23 for 3 when she dismissed Muneeba Ali for 9.
Connell took her third when she bowled Nida Dar for 9.
Alleyne then bowled Aliya Riaz for 8 and Iram Javid for 11 as Pakistan slipped further to 57-6 in the 13th over.
However, that would be the last of the success for the West Indies Women who toiled in vain while trying to break the partnership between Naseem who hit two fours and a six in her 33-ball knock.
At the other end, Sana proved just as difficult to dislodge as she scored her runs from 21 deliveries.
Connell returned 3-21 while Alleyne took 2-23.
Earlier, the West Indies got their total courtesy of an opening stand of 65 between Matthews and Deandra Dottin, who scored 32 and 31, respectively.
Both openers were dismissed in the space of two balls as the West Indies Women slipped from 65-0 to 67-2. Captain Stafanie Taylor went for 11 with the score at 93 and the scoring slowed.
Kyshona Knight scored 23, Chedean Knight, 14, and Kycia Knight 15, helping the West Indies closed on 136 for 6.
Dar was tight taking 2-15 and Sana took 2-32.
Developing players Kaysia Schultz and Quiana Joseph are among 18 West Indies Women players offered retainer contract for the 2021-2022 season by Cricket West Indies (CWI).
West Indies Women’s head coach Courtney Walsh plans to focus on improving the mental and technical skills of the 30 players currently encamped in Antigua for the next month in preparation for international matches including the World Cup qualifiers later this year.
According to the former West Indies fast bowler turned coach, the upskilling of the women will be a continuation of what began when the women were called to camp in January this year.
Over the past few years, West Indies Women, world champions in 2016, has fallen down the pecking order in world cricket, struggling to make high scores when players like Deandra Dottin, Stafanie Taylor or Hayley Matthews fail to make big scores.
This was evident when the West Indies were swept 5-0 during a five T20 series against England in September 2020, when the side failed to achieve a score of 140 runs in any of the matches. England, meanwhile, scored over 140 runs in all but one of the matches.
Walsh believes that for that trend to end the team cannot rely on just two or three players.
“Consistency can’t be just three players. If we are playing six or seven batters, not everybody is to come off all the time but we need to have four or five batters to be consistently producing. It can’t be the same three all the time,” said Walsh, who also indicated that there are other areas in which they have to improve as well.
“They also have to be aware of the game situation, so we are going to combine both as we are going to have the batters being a lot more consistent and not just depend on two or three players.”
Walsh revealed that there are signs that the camp in January had already begun to yield positive indicators of the change required.
“We started some drills in the last camp so it will be a continuation of that. We saw where we were getting a little more consistency. We saw where we able to bat 50 overs because in the first game that didn’t happen but in the last two games that happened,” Walsh said referring to three intra-squad practice matches played while in the camp that month.
“I also think it was the mindset as well so those areas we are going to be working on, with the mental skills we are going to stay there (at the crease) and we want them to be technically sound as well to be able to deliver.”
The Cricket West Indies (CWI) Selection Panel has named 30 players for an estimated month-long West Indies Women’s high-performance camp to be held in Antigua starting on May 2.
This will be the second such month-long camp in 2021 assembled under the guidance of Head Coach Courtney Walsh and his support team.
With the ICC Women’s World Cup Qualifiers now rescheduled for December, Coach Walsh has devised a programme to maximize team preparations ahead of international cricket and the qualifiers later in the year.
“The purpose of this camp is to work on consistency and game awareness. The last camp was more observational, and we got a pretty good idea of where the ladies are at. There are 30 players coming in and a few of them are coming in nursing injuries, so the coaching staff and medical team are ready to work with all of them,” he said.
“We are going to use this camp to see as much of the players as possible. I am most excited to see the younger ones coming into the camp because we’re trying to build the pool of players available. So, I think it’ll be a great opportunity for these youngsters and the other new players to grasp the chance before them.”
Among the 30 players called up for the camp are eight (8) uncapped players including teenagers Zaida James from St. Lucia and Jannillea Glasgow from St. Vincent and the Grenadines. James is a left-arm medium-pacer while Glasgow is a right-arm medium pacer.
The other uncapped players are Rashada Williams, Caneisha Isaac, Shanika Bruce, Mandy Mangru and Rachel Vincent. Making a return to the camp is left-handed wicket-keeper/batter Kycia Knight.
CWI’s Lead Selector for Women’s cricket, Ann Browne-John was excited by the bigger pool of players for this camp.
“It is very important to have the West Indies players back in a training camp as the coaches can continue to help them hone their skills as we prepare for our next series. Most of the top international teams have now restarted playing and it is critical for the WI team to prepare as we anticipate more international cricket coming up this summer,” she said while indicating that the camp will also focus on specific areas for development.
“In an effort to continue to unearth talent, eight players have been included who were not in the January camp. It serves as an opportunity for the coaches and selectors to look at some of the young up and coming players. Due to the pandemic, a regional tournament has not been held yet, so the players haven’t had the opportunity to impress the selectors in competitive matches.
“Heavy emphasis has been placed on batters including first-timers Rachel Vincent, an opening batter from Trinidad and Tobago, and Mandy Mangru, a young player from Guyana who has been impressive in the Under-19 tournament. The camp also includes two young teenage medium pacers, Zaida James and Jannillea Glasgow.”
Cricket West Indies (CWI) has been working closely with the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Sport in Antigua & Barbuda to orchestrate logistics and agree on the safety protocols for the camp after the successful hosting of the first Women’s high-performance camp, the CG Insurance Super50 Cup and the West Indies Men’s International Home Series against Sri Lanka. All players and support staff were tested with negative COVID-19 results before their arrival in Antigua. The players and support staff will train and live in a bio-secure bubble for the duration of the camp.
Full squad: Aaliyah Alleyne, Reniece Boyce, Shanika Bruce, Shemaine Campbelle, Shamilia Connell, Britney Cooper, Deandra Dottin, Cherry Ann Fraser, Shabika Gajnabi, Jannillea Glasgow, Sheneta Grimmond, Shawnisha Hector, Chinelle Henry, Caneisha Isaac, Zaida James, Japhina Joseph, Qiana Joseph, Kycia Knight, Kyshona Knight, Mandy Mangru, Hayley Matthews, Anisa Mohammed, Chedean Nation, Karishma Ramharack, Kaysia Schultz, Shakera Selman, Steffi Soogrim, Stafanie Taylor, Rachel Vincent and Rashada Williams.
The team-management unit comprises Courtney Walsh - Head Coach; Sheena Gooding - Team Manager; Ryan Austin - Assistant Coach; Corey Collymore - Assistant Coach; Steve Liburd - Assistant Coach; Samantha Lynch - Assistant Coach; Robert Samuels - Assistant Coach; Neil Barry – Physiotherapist; Shayne Cooper - Strength & Conditioning
West Indies Women’s Head Coach Courtney Walsh was impressed with the efforts of emerging bowlers Steffi Soogrim and Kaysia Schultz who delivered standout performances during the squad’s first intra-squad 50-over match Antigua Thursday.
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