Four teams in Group B are now on two points with England leading the way, followed by Pakistan. The West Indies are third and with two teams coming out of each group are already in danger of not making it into the semifinals. South Africa are fourth.

Pakistan and South Africa have played just one game, while England, who suffered defeat to South Africa in their opener but recovered to demolish Thailand, are in the same position as the West Indies.

Sharp new ball bowling from Diana Baig exposed a struggling Windies top order and only when Stafanie Taylor and Shemaine Campbelle were at the crease did they look fluent in posting 124 for seven.

Pakistan openers Javeria Khan and Muneeba Ali controlled the chase expertly and put on 57, with captain Bismah Maroof’s unbeaten 38 steering her side to a seventh win at the Women’s T20 World Cup.

The Windies top order faltered and found themselves three wickets down within seven overs for the second game in succession.

Hayley Matthews, star of the 2016 Women’s T20 World Cup Final, fell for a diamond duck as Diana got the game’s first ball to move in the air and rap the opener on the pads.

Lee-Ann Kirby’s stand-and-deliver approach yielded three quick boundaries as she lofted Aiman Anwar for four over mid-off and then cover in the fourth over.

But she perished on the first ball of the fifth, Diana enticing another heave from the opener who skewed a catch to Muneeba Ali running back at point, departing for 16.

Deandra Dottin’s troubled stay at the crease ended when she tried to drag Nida Dar from outside off-stump over long-on and could only pick out Iram Javed, departing for one from 10 balls.

Experienced duo Taylor and Campbelle steadied the ship, the captain improving on the disappointing strike rotation last time out before Campbelle cleared the midwicket rope of Dar.

Campbelle - who brought up a century of T20I appearances against Thailand - missed an attempted reverse sweep off Anam Amin and while given not out on-field, Bismah’s referral adjudged her lbw for 43.

All-rounder Chinelle Henry couldn’t settle, dropped on her fourth ball as Anam grassed a return catch, but she departed when trapped lbw for four playing Aiman Anwar across the line.

Taylor put her foot down in the 18th over, carting Aiman’s low full toss over midwicket and just clearing the long-on boundary off Nida before picking out Diana on the cow corner fence for 43 from 47 balls.

Pakistan’s opening pair were cautious at the start of their reply, with thick edges wide of the slip cordon yielding three boundaries inside the first four overs as they reached 28.

Henry’s medium pace caused few problems as Javeria cut and then pulled her to the rope and Muneeba got in on the act with a firm drive as the over went for 14 runs.

Taylor turned to spin after the Powerplay but Javeria was well set, picking boundaries off Matthews and then twice from Afy Fletcher.

It took the Windies skipper herself to remove Javeria, who misjudged the length of a straight one and departed lbw for a well-made 35.

Muneeba, whose opening partnership of 58 with Javeria was Pakistan’s highest first-wicket stand at the tournament, failed to pick Fletcher’s googly on 25 and could only chip to Anisa Mohammed at midwicket.

Bismah took 24 balls to find her first boundary but continued to use her sweep well to spin and scored heavily behind square, Nida Dar offering composed support with mistakes from Taylor and Nation symptomatic of a disappointing Windies fielding display.

Pakistan were untroubled in the closing stages, Bismah hitting the winning boundary as her partnership of 50 with Nida paved the way for a memorable Pakistan win.

Scores in brief

Pakistan beat West Indies by eight wickets, Manuka Oval, Canberra

West Indies 124-7, 20 overs (Shemaine Campbelle 43, Stafanie Taylor 43; Diana Baig 2-19)
Pakistan 127-2, 18.2 overs (Bismah Maroof 38 not out, Javeria Khan 35; Stafanie Taylor 1-20)

Chasing Pakistan’s Women’s 225-7, Taylor scored 102 not out after coming to the rescue of her team that has slumped to 15-3 within the first five overs.

Taylor shared in an 83-run fourth-wicket partnership with Hayley Matthews, who made 49, and then a match-winning unbroken partnership of 128 with Chedean Nation, who scored 51 not out, her maiden ODI half-century.

Taylor faced 117 balls for her score that included 12 fours while Nation struck seven boundaries facing 67 balls during the match-winning stand.

Anam Amin, who did the early damage by dismissing the in-form Diandra Dottin for 4 and Shemaine Campbelle for one, finished with 2-45 from her 10 overs. Diana Baig, who dismissed Rashada Williams for 6, returned figures of 1-36 from her eight overs.

Sadia Iqbal, who snagged Matthews’ wicket, finished with 1-36 from seven overs.

Earlier, sent in to bat, Pakistan Women owed their best score of the series to opener Muneeba Ali, who scored a patient 58. She and Ayesha Zafar staged an opening stand of 49 before the latter was out caught and bowled by Aaliyah Alleyne (2-41) for 13.

Ali and Javeria Khan put on 74 over the next 20 overs as the West Indies bowlers tightened their grip on the innings. Ali eventually fell to Taylor in the 31^st over with the score on 123. Six runs later, the pressure began to take a toll as Taylor ran Khan out for 13.

Two balls later, Alleyne picked up her second wicket when she bowled Omaima Sohail for 27.

Iram Javed and Aliya Riaz held up the progress of the West Indies bowlers with a 44-run fifth-wicket stand that was eventually broken when Javed was dismissed by Shakera Selman for 26.

Riaz would eventually get Pakistan Women past 200 with her unbeaten 44 that helped set up a decent total for the West Indies Women to chase.

Selman took the wicket of Fatima Sana for nine to end with figures of 2-40.

Baig was run out for nine off the last ball of the innings.

Taylor, the Player of the Match scored 105 from 116 balls and hit 11 fours and two sixes as the West Indies Women cruised to 209-5 from 47.5 overs, chasing Pakistan Women’s 205-9. It was Taylor’s sixth ODI century and she celebrated by signalling towards her teammates in the dressing room and raising her hands towards the heavens.

Taylor added a significant partnership sixth-wicket partnership of 42 with Britney Cooper to see the team home. After coming together at 167-5 in the 43rd over, they put on the unbroken stand during which Cooper played some breathtaking strokes over the off-side as she ended on 17 not out off 21 balls with three fours.

Earlier, Taylor was also excellent with the ball as she took 3-29 from her 10 overs to help restrict the Pakistan batters. Nida Dar top scored with 55 and there were worthwhile contributions from openers Muneeba Ali and Ayesha Zafar, who scored 36 and 46, respectively, and featured in an opening stand of 70 before the former was run out.

Anisa Mohammed took 2-31 and there was a wicket each for Shamilla Connell and Shakera Selmon