It was an issue they had planned to begin addressing during the regional women’s and U19 tournaments that were cancelled earlier this year because of the Covid-19 pandemic.
During the recent five-match tour of England, the Caribbean women were swept 5-0 in a woefully lop-sided series. Only Deandra Dottin walked away with her head held high scoring 185 runs at an average of 37 over the five matches. She also bowled well despite nursing a sore shoulder.
No other batter made 100 runs during the series. Captain Stafanie Taylor with 78 runs was the only player to come close while Hayley Matthews was the next best having scored 38 runs, 21 of them coming in a single inning. Other than Dottin and Taylor, no other batter had a double-digit average, an area of great concern for Browne-John.
“Most definitely, and we have recognized that fact,” she said while speaking on Sportsnation Live on Nationwide Radio in Jamaica on Saturday night.
She indicated that this was a concern that the selectors had been discussing for some time and which they had planned to begin looking into with the regional tournaments this year.
“Unfortunately, we were not able to have a regional senior or U19 tournament this year but that is something we have discussed as selectors; that we now have to start looking for the next group of players, the group that would normally be like an ‘A’ team or an U19 team. So we have to start finding that group of players and start nurturing that group,” she said.
Brown-John said the selectors had hoped that there would have been a “vibrant” U19 tournament as there was supposed to be an U19 World Cup in early 2021. “So, we were looking towards that tournament to find some talent and we were also hoping for the regional tournament to look, particularly for batters because that is the area in which we are struggling most,” she said.
“It was also mentioned that we don’t have left-hand batters in our top order, we have to pick somebody who is left-handed and who is performing, so that is another consideration.”
The selectors were also hoping to unearth a specific type of bowler as well, the lead selector revealed.
“We have a great number of offspinners but we only have one leg spinner in Afy Fletcher, but we don’t have a large number of left-arm orthodox bowlers,” she said. “When we go out, every team we face we come up against left-arm orthodox. We have to look for that kind of player in the Caribbean.”
The match was reduced to 36 overs per side because of excess moisture on the pitch. The umpires deliberated and delayed the toss and start of the match allowing the pitch time to dry. The game was then reduced by a further two overs to 34 overs per side as the rains came and forced a stop in play.
When play began, Pakistan women took advantage of some wayward bowling by the West Indies Women, both in the opening overs and then the back end of the innings which allowed them to post 190-8.
Muneeba Ali was the top scorer for Pakistan with 39 while Omaima Sohail scored 34 against the bowling of Shabika Gajnabi, who finished with figures of 2-26 and Chinelle Henry 2-37.
At the innings break, the umpires gave the West Indies Women a revised target of 194 runs from the 34 overs. The West Indies Women struggled to maintain or exceed the required run-rate, leaving too many runs to get in the final overs with wickets falling consistently.
Only Britney Cooper, who led all scorers with 40 and Deandra Dottin 37, offered any real resistance to the bowling of Fatima Sana Khan, who returned figures of 5-39 and Diana Baig 2-32, as the West Indies Women were bowled out for 171.
However, West Indies Women's Head Coach Courtney Walsh was pleased with the overall performance of the team throughout the series despite the back to back losses.
"There's a fair amount of positives with the cricket upfront. We lacked consistency in the last two games, we didn't show that hunger,” Walsh said.
“I wouldn't say it was complacency but we made some crucial mistakes that cost us right throughout. The results of both series wins were very good because we hadn't had a series for a while. Moving forward we have to look at where we are. We have the qualifiers coming up and World Cup after, so we have to address a number of areas."
Captain Stafanie Taylor shared similar Walsh’s sentiments.
"We will take away the series win but I guess when you look back on these two last games, I think we should have done a lot better,” said Taylor, who was nonetheless happy for the series win.
“It's very pleasing, we haven't won a series at home or away (in a long time), to actually win a series at home, once you win at home you can transfer that to a win away, so I'm really pleased we're back up and running when it comes to winning."
Batting first, the West Indies scored a paltry 174 all out from 49.2 overs. In reply, SAW cruised to 175-4 in 39.5 overs.
For the consecutive match, Kycia Knight top-scored for the West Indies with 48 while Deandra Dottin was once again among the runs with 36. However, the other West Indies Women, who were without captain Stafanie Taylor, failed to step up as only Shemaine Campbell and newcomer Mandy Mangru, with 15 each managed to get into double figures.
Shabnim Ismail was the spearhead of the South African attack with 4-44. There were two wickets each for Ayabonga Khaka (2-25) and Chloe Tryon (2-12) from just six overs.
South Africa’s victorious chase was led by Andrie Steyn who scored a solid 52 while Captain Sune Luus was once again among the runs with 47.
Anisa Mohammed was the best of the West Indies bowlers with 2-31 from nine overs.
In the match reduced to 20 overs per side because of persistent rain and a wet outfield, the West Indies were restricted to 89-7. Deandra Dottin, who scored 27, Stafanie Taylor, 18, and Afy Fletcher, 12, were the only batters in double figures as Nida Dar tore through the line-up with 4-10 from her four overs.
Pakistan duly achieved their target without much fuss as opener Muneeba Ali scored 37. Captain Bismah Maroof was unbeaten on 20 and Omaima Sohail 22 not out to lead their team to victory with seven balls to spare.
Shakera Selman with 1-15 from 3.5 overs and Fletcher 1-23 were the wicket-takers for the West Indies Women, who will now face a must-win match against unbeaten South Africa if they are to have any chance to advance.
In what was a must-win match for the Caribbean women, Captain Stafanie Taylor won the toss and asked South Africa to bat.
It proved to be the correct decision as Chinelle Henry took 3-11 and was backed up by Shamilia Connell, who took 1-18 as South Africa lost four wickets for just 22 runs by the sixth over. However, the situation could have been worse for South Africa as the West Indies dropped three chances in those early overs, two of them by Deandra Dottin.
Through the efforts of Mignon du Preez and Marizanne Kapp, South Africa began to fight back as the pair shared in an unbroken partnership of 39 before the rains came. Du Preez, who hit three fours in a row off Hayley Matthews’s first over that yielded 15 runs before the rains came, was unbeaten on 38 from 31 balls and Kapp on five with South Africa on 61-4.
Both teams earned one point each. With it, the West Indies Women move to third on the standings with 7 points and now await the outcome of the South Africa-India match on March 27. Should South Africa win, the West Indies will secure a semi-final berth, should India win, then the West Indies will be eliminated.
“It's not the way we liked. can't do much about it, something we can't control,” said a concerned Taylor, who praised Henry afterwards.
“We were hoping that we would have had a game. The bowlers have been doing a fantastic job, For Chinelle, there's something about South Africa, she always does well, she takes wickets.
I tossed her the ball and she was in great rhythm. We will probably have some popcorn, hope that South Africa do beat India for us to give it a chance. It's something we can't control but do hope it goes our way.”
The West Indies Women’s captain conceded that their inconsistent form has led them to this situation where the team’s destiny is not within its own hands.
“Probably other than the first two games we have played we have been iffy. Travelling does put a dent in that, you don't get much recovery time, we are trying our best to recover,” she said.
“Niggles do creep in at times, it's about managing them. It's never easy when you are travelling around. If we go to the semis, you just have to go out and play, does not matter if it's a niggle or an injury, you have to step up. It comes down to how badly you want it.”
West Indies Women's all-rounder Deandra Dottin shared some of her captain’s concerns but remained optimistic.
"We knew coming into this tournament that it was going to be tough. We had to travel after every game so consistency was difficult,” she said.
“We played good cricket, we just didn't put enough runs on the board in some games. The girls are still in good spirits; we always have that never die attitude. We just have to look forward now. The tournament is still playing so not all is lost just yet."
There will be two groups of five competing for progress to the semi-finals, with the top two from each group making it through.
The West Indies find themselves in Group B along with England, South Africa, Pakistan and Thailand.
West Indies had a successful tournament in 2018, reaching the semi-finals before being knocked out by the eventual champions Australia. Whilst their form in the format has not been ideal over the last few years, they still have some of the most exciting players in the tournament lining up for them.
Deandra Dottin is among the best attacking batters in the world, particularly if she's facing spin - in the last two years she scores at 8 runs per over against spinners, and only gets out every 38 balls.
With ball in hand, captain Stafanie Taylor will be looking to Shakera Selman to make inroads at the top of the inning - nobody swings the ball more than her over the last two years of T20I cricket, and on the hard fast pitches of Australia, movement through the air will be crucial.
If all goes to plan, West Indies will be more than confident of progressing to the knockout stages.
England made the final in the last edition of the T20 World Cup before, like West Indies, being eliminated by Australia. Heather Knight's side are still somewhat in transition, but a new-found balance relying on Nat Sciver to bowl four overs has allowed them to play an extra specialist batsman - it's given the batting line-up some serious oomph. On the bowling side of things, Sophie Ecclestone is a very important part of the English attack. A tall left-arm orthodox spinner, no player has taken more wickets for England in T20Is since the start of 2018 than Ecclestone, with 35 wickets in that time at an average of 16.82. Offering control as well as attacking threat, she'll be the likely fulcrum of the England attack. Knight will see anything but progress from the group as abject failure, and they'll be eager to go all the way.
Pakistan bowl 76 per cent spin over the last two years - that’s the most of any team in the world during that period. Much like Bangladesh in Group A, this does at least give them a clear blueprint to work to a basic structure they can focus on in the absence of many acclaimed stars. If they have one standout player it's Bismah Maroof, who has notched up 782 T20I runs in the last two years, comfortably the most of any Pakistan batter and the 11th most for anyone in the world. If anyone in Pakistan green is going to spring a shock on the opposition, it'll be her.
In contrast to Pakistan, 76 per cent of the deliveries sent down from South Africa over the last two years, come from pace bowlers, the most of any side in the competition. They were a disappointment at the last T20 World Cup, not reaching the semi-finals. Their bowling is mixed, but their batting is likely to focus around a few key individuals, and one in particular. Alyssa Healy is renowned as an absolute colossus, but Chloe Tryon - at least statistically - is almost keeping pace with her. A powerful left-hander, Tryon is particularly effective against spin bowling, rocketing along at 8.6 runs per over (compared to 7.6 runs per over against seamers). The South African has a particular preference for hitting off spinners, scoring 180 from 113 deliveries against off-break bowlers in T20I cricket. Given how much spin is bowled in T20 cricket, this sets Tryon apart, her strength and power meaning that she doesn’t need pace on the ball to cause damage - South Africa will be looking to her to really lift the scoring rate when she’s at the crease.
Thailand are the most notable presence at this T20 World Cup, an unfamiliar presence in top-level cricket for both men and women. However, much of their success in recent years and in qualification is down to Nattaya Boochatham. A skilful right-arm seamer, Boochatham has taken a lot of wickets since the start of 2018; in fact, in that time period, only Poonam Yadav has taken more international T20 wickets than Boochatham. Undoubtedly, this has been given a boost by the standard of opposition that Thailand have been facing, but it’s been Boochatham who has done the damage in those matches. If Thailand are going to lay a glove on any side at this tournament, she’ll have to be at her best.
West Indies Women will have to play catch up in their three-match T20 International series against India as they fell to a 49-run defeat in the first encounter at the Dr. DY Patil Sports Academy, Navi Mumbai, on Sunday.
The match, which featured a record aggregate of 341 runs between the two teams, saw the visitors unable to chase down India’s imposing total of 195-4, as they only mustered 146-7 in their 20 overs.
West Indies star all-rounder Deandra Dottin became the first player to be sold and the second most expensive in the mini-auction for the 2025 Women's Premier League (WPL), as she was purchased by the Gujarat Giants for a staggering INR 1.7 crore (approximately US$200,000) in Bengaluru on Sunday.
The 33-year-old cricketer brings a wealth of experience to the shortest format of the game, having played 132 WT20Is with a tally of 2,817 runs, including two centuries and 12 half-centuries.
Soogrim returned figures of 3 for 5 from 4.5 overs while Schultz had figures of 3 for 36 in the match won by Anisa Mohammed’s XI over Stafanie Taylor’s XI.
“We had a low-scoring game, but I was particularly pleased to see the effort by all the ladies on both teams. Even more impressed with the likes of young Soogrim and Schultz, the way how they bowled and the effort they put in. Also, the opening attack of Connell and Aaliyah Alleyne kept the batters on guard," Walsh said.
"It was a challenging wicket when we saw Deandra bat and then later on when Stafanie and Hayley batted, chasing the low score. We saw some good signs, a lot of positives to work from but still work to be done. I think all in all it was a good outing for just the first game and definitely, we will be working on improvements for the remaining matches.”
Batting first, Mohammed’s XI were bowled out for 112 in 30.5 overs thanks largely to Soogrim and Shamilia Connell who took 2 for 14 from the four overs she bowled. Deandra Dottin did her best to counter to incisive bowling scoring an unbeaten 51 while facing 80 balls.
Chasing 113, Taylor’s XI lost Hayley Matthews for 19 and Taylor for 26 as the side were bowled out for 104.
The 23-year-old Schultz was the standout left-arm orthodox bowler exhibited good control already demonstrating the benefits of the camp.
