Afy Fletcher walks off as New Zealand players celebrate their win over the West Indies in the second semi-final at the ICC Women's T20 World Cup in Sharjah on Friday.
Associated Press
The West Indies Women came agonizingly short of a second trip to the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup final after suffering an eight-run loss to New Zealand in their semi-final in Sharjah on Friday.
New Zealand first made 128-9 off their 20 overs after winning the toss and electing to bat first.
Openers Georgia Plimmer and Suzie Bates were the main run getters with 33 and 26, respectively, while Isabella Gaze made a crucial 20* off 14 balls at the backend of the innings.
Deandra Dottin produced an excellent spell of bowling with 4-22 from her four overs while Afy Fletcher continued her good form with the ball in the tournament with 2-23 from three overs.
Karishma Ramharack and Aaliyah Alleyne split the other two wickets.
The West Indies then came up just short of their target in the end, reaching 120-8 off their 20 overs.
Openers Qiana Joseph and captain Hayley Matthews put on 16 for the first wicket before Joseph went for 12 with two balls remaining in the third over.
The wickets of Shemaine Campbelle (3) and the returning Stafanie Taylor (13) followed soon after leaving the Windies 41-3 in the ninth over.
Not long after, all hope seemed lost as Matthews went for a hard-fought 15 off 21 balls in the 11th over before Aaliyah Alleyne’s wicket for four in the 14th over left the West Indies looking all but beaten at 63-5.
A fighting 33-run sixth wicket partnership between Deandra Dottin and Afy Fletcher made things interesting including 23-run 16th over that left the West Indies needing just 34 from the final 24 deliveries.
Dottin’s wicket off the third ball of the next over for a 22-ball 33 pretty much ended all hope for a West Indies victory.
After Chedean Nation came and went for a duck, Fletcher was joined by Zaida James and the pair tried their best to combat some smart bowling from the New Zealanders.
Eventually, the West Indies got to the last over needing 15 to win.
A boundary from James off the first ball produced some nerves for New Zealand but that was followed by a dot ball and then a wicket, putting an end to the West Indian charge.
Fletcher finished 17* while James made 14 from eight balls.
Eden Carson finished with 3-29 from her four overs while Captain Amelia Kerr took 2-14 from four overs.
New Zealand will now take on South Africa in Sunday’s final with both teams looking for their first ICC Women’s T20 World Cup title.
Full Scores:
New Zealand Women 128-9 off 20 overs (Georgia Plimmer 33, Suzie Bates 26, Isabella Gaze 20*, Deandra Dottin 4-22, Afy Fletcher 2-23)
West Indies Women 120-8 off 20 overs (Deandra Dottin 33, Afy Fletcher 17*, Eden Carson 3-29, Amelia Kerr 2-14)
Bradley Jacks is a budding journalist and an avid sports fan. His love of research and sports has led him to SportsMax.tv, a place where those passions work hand in hand to allow him to produce content.
Bangladesh tour match ends in rain-affected draw against West Indies Select XI
The touring Bangladesh side and the West Indies Select XI played to a draw in their two-day tour match at the Coolidge Cricket Ground on Monday. Rain disruptions and a dominant display by Bangladesh’s bowlers on the second day ensured the match ended without a result.
Resuming from their overnight score of 5 for 1 in response to Bangladesh's first-innings total of 253-7, the West Indies Select XI struggled to find their footing. The hosts were restricted to 87-9 in just 27.4 overs, with only Kimani Melius (23), Justin Greaves (20), and Daniel Beckford (19) reaching double figures.
Bangladesh's bowlers were relentless, led by Hasan Murad, who delivered a remarkable spell, taking three wickets for just one run. Hasan Mahmud and Taskin Ahmed chipped in with two wickets apiece, ensuring the West Indies XI could not mount a significant challenge.
On Sunday, Bangladesh’s innings was anchored by contributions from Jaker Ali (48), Mahidal Islam (41), and 31 each from Litton Das and Mominul Haque. The visiting team posted a competitive 253-7 despite tight bowling from Jair McAllister and Chaim Holder, both finishing with figures of 2-48.
While the match provided valuable preparation for Bangladesh, the rain-affected nature of the contest limited opportunities for extended play. The touring side will take heart from their bowlers’ performance, while they prepare to face the West Indies senior team.
Australia race to seven-wicket win to whitewash Pakistan
Australia signed off on their T20I series against Pakistan in style after racing to a seven-wicket win with almost nine overs in hand in Monday's third match.
The hosts had already sealed a series success thanks to Spencer Johnson's five-for in Saturday's second match, and any hopes Pakistan had of taking a consolation win were dashed by a dismal performance with the bat in Hobart.
Pakistan were bundled out for just 117 as Aaron Hardie finished with figures of 3-21 and Johnson (2-24) and Adam Zampa (2-11) also dismissed two apiece for Australia.
Babar Azam's knock had put Pakistan in a decent position at 61-1 through six overs, but when Haseebullah Khan handed Matthew Short a simple catch off Zampa's spin ball, the wickets began to tumble with ease.
Pakistan's next five wickets fell for just 31 further runs, with seven of their batters finishing in single figures and four managing one run or fewer, with Babar (41) the only batter to score above 30.
Australia lost Short and Jake Fraser-McGurk early but Marcus Stoinis took any jeopardy out of the chase by scoring an unbeaten 61 runs off 27 balls, with his stand including five fours and five maximums.
Stoinis was unwilling to hang around, smashing Haris Rauf for 22 runs in an over to take Australia to the brink.
He then hit Shaheen Shah Afridi for 19 in the penultimate over as the hosts got the job done with 52 balls remaining.
Data Debrief: Quick and easy for Stoinis
Australia could have taken their time after being set such a paltry target, but Stoinis was determined to put on a show for those present at the Bellerive Oval.
Only twice has he bettered his knock of 61 in T20Is – versus New Zealand in 2021 (78) and against Oman at the World Cup earlier this year (67*). His strike rate of 225.92, while ruthless, falls some way short of his T20I best of 327.77 versus Sri Lanka in 2022 (59 off 18).
Pakistan's Babar, meanwhile, is now second on the all-time list of T20I run scorers with 4,192 to his name, having overtaken Virat Kohli. Only Rohit Sharma (4,231) is ahead of him.
Buttler delighted England have 'winning habit back' despite fifth-match washout
Jos Buttler is pleased to have England's "winning habit back" after securing a 3-1 T20I series win over West Indies, with the final match abandoned due to rain.
England had opted to bowl and the hosts reached 44-0 through Evin Lewis (29) and Shai Hope (14) after five overs before the downpour began in St Lucia.
Despite ground staff's attempts to clear the surface, the match was abandoned, with England claiming the win, having lost the ODI leg of the tour 2-1.
The tourists had won the first three T20Is, with the West Indies earning a consolation on Saturday in a high-scoring clash. Despite not finishing their final white-ball assignment of 2024, Buttler was delighted with the work his side have done this week.
"We're delighted with the series win. We've played some brilliant cricket," Buttler said.
"I've been happy with how we've started games, setting the tone with the powerplay wickets, as we've seen from Saqib being named player of the series. We've had lots of different guys chipping in at various times, so I'm really pleased for everybody.
"The fast-bowling department is looking good, and they all bring something different with their variety, so it's exciting for English cricket to have that.
"I enjoyed it [being captain without keeping], I felt like I had a bit more time, and it was nice to be out there running around and closer to the bowlers. I got everything I wanted to out of doing that.
"It's great to have the winning habit back."
West Indies struggled to carry over their ODI form into the T20I series but were looking to restore some pride in the final match, having impressed in the fourth. Captain Rovman Powell is now hoping they can find some consistency.
"It's been a tough series and credit Jos Buttler and his team, who came to these conditions and dominated. Having said that, we played good cricket in patches but not in long enough periods," he said.
"I think we always, as a batting group, use a template, but that didn't work in our first few games. As a team, we need to assess faster. It took us two or three games. The bowling group needs to sharpen up in a few areas.
"It's always a problem with the Caribbean cricketers, we always wander off when we are not playing for West Indies. It's a treadmill, and we don't spend time together. We have to keep our communication with players and ensure they are ready to go."
SportsMax is the Caribbean sports channel of choice, committed to providing sporting content of the highest quality to the Caribbean, delivered by a team of highly innovative, passionate and qualified professionals.
(876) 619-7629
digitalmedia@sportsmax.tv
