The West Indies’ ploy of adopting a carefree, hard-hitting approach towards a must-win tie at the ICC Women’s World Cup proved their undoing.
On a Bandra Kurla Complex wicket that demanded caution and respect for bowlers, England shot out the Caribbean side for a mere 101 in 36.4 overs, and went about chasing down the target in 35 overs and win by six wickets to book its berth in the Super Six.
The fact that six West Indies batters scored zero, and Kshyona Knight’s 33 was the highest individual contribution, tells the story of the match. Once the West Indies were bowled out cheaply, England did not look back from there.
Skipper Merissa Aguilleira misread the BKC track and decided to bat early morning.
“Given a chance again, I will bowl first. We needed to adapt to the situation, and our batters didn’t,” she said.
England swing bowlers Anya Shrubsole (four for 21), Katherine Brunt (two for 10) and Arran Brindle (zero for 3) reaped rewards against the trigger-happy batters.
Kycia Knight was yorked by Brunt, and Stafanie Taylor stepped out against Shrubsole after four balls and lost her leg stump on the fifth as both the openers went for ‘ducks’.
In fact, half the side was back in the dug-out by the 14th over, including captain Aguilleira who was run out.
Deandra Dottin, who is reputed for fearsome shot-making, lofted the first ball she faced to the ropes, but edged the very next delivery next behind.
Interestingly, the West Indies side hit a mere seven fours, of which four were by No.8 Shanel Daley — far cry from the previous match against Lanka where the side hit 34 boundaries and seven sixes.
Charlotte Edwards did not open in the England chase, having gone off the field due to illness for a while when rivals were batting.
Makeshift opener Arran Brindle (14) put on 66 for the first wicket in 25 overs with Danielle Wyatt (40).
With less than three per over needed, they went about it at a rather sedate pace, bordering on over-caution.
After Brindle’s departure, Dottin created a flutter by getting three quick wickets.
But, Heather Knight (18) stemmed the rot, as she and Gunn saw the side through, with considerable help from Ms Extras — the West Indies gave away 25, of which there were 20 wides. Talking of England’s run-rate, Shrubsole, the player of the match for her four-wicket haul, said: “The ball was doing a bit all day. We wanted to go over the line.
West Indies had tried to carry on from where they had left off against Sri Lanka, but the gambit failed.
Aguilleira summed it up, saying: “Patience was needed, it is a learning experience for our young side.”
The scores:
West Indies 101 in 36.4 overs (Kyshona Knight 33, Shanel Daley 30, Anya Shrubsole four for 21, Arran Brindle three for 0) lost to England 103 for four in 35 overs (Danielle Wyatt 40, Deandra Dottin three for 20).
