West Indies knock England out, join South Africa in semi-finals
West Indies broke a 13-match losing streak and topped Group B to set up a semi-final against New Zealand
West Indies broke a 13-match losing streak and topped Group B to set up a semi-final against New Zealand
Scorer: M Venkat Raghav | Commentator: Shashwat Kumar
9:35pm And...breathe. Another riveting day of Women's T20 World Cup action, ending in pure delirium for one, and utter disappointment for the other. More of that, of course, is lined up, and we will be back at it on Thursday with the first semi-final. Until then, this is goodbye from Raghav and myself. Take care, everyone, and hope to see you on Thursday!
9:30pm The dates are set. The teams have also been finalized now. It will be Australia versus South Africa in Dubai on October 17, with New Zealand taking on the West Indies a day later in Sharjah. Two past winners, including the defending champions, and two teams that have lost finals before. A tantalizing semi-final line-up, which promises a whole heap of drama.
Hayley Matthews, West Indies captain: I don't think many people had us (as semi-finalists). Incredibly proud of the group. Up against the odds tonight but to put up a performance like that with the bat, Joseph scoring her first T20I fifty - what a time to do that. For the first six or so overs of our innings, it did slide on a bit (better). We have been chasing (before in this tournament) and we back ourselves to knock off whatever runs are put on the board. Important to take tomorrow off but to then get right back to it. We have not won the World Cup yet. It will be a big game against NZ and we are up for the challenge. Everyone knows their roles, what they want to do and on the day, we want to execute. (On today's performance) Pretty close (to perfection). We bowled really well but we did let up in the field. Feel we are peaking at the right time, and hopefully we can see something even better in the semi-final. This is exactly what I wanted (in my 100th T20I)
Heather Knight, England captain: (On how she is feeling) Frustrated. Bad timing for me and tough to watch. Credit to them, they came at us hard, played the conditions well and put us under the pump. Tough to take but credit to Hayley and her team. (On the score) I don't think we were far off. There was a bit of turn in the surface, and was tough at times (to bat on). We bowled too short and they played it well. That partnership was top-quality and put us under the pump. (On her calf injury) Little tweak. I was strapped up, ready to come in and hit a few but yeah, frustrated. We will be judged on today. In a tournament like this, you slip up once and it can be costly. Very frustrated but very proud of the girls and they fight they have shown.
Jamie: "Congratulations, West Indies! You have thoroughly outplayed England tonight, particularly with the bat. England will know this was a game they could have won (e.g. by taking catches), but they crumbled badly under pressure, and that too is partly down to WI who applied that pressure!"
Qiana Joseph, speaking to the broadcaster after collecting her Player of the Match award and after shaking a leg in celebration: She (Matthews) told me to just back myself and to watch the ball, and go through with the line of the ball. I was real aggressive at the start and that followed me through my innings. It was a bit challenging at first but I backed myself and played through the line. (On her first fifty and doing it in a pressure game) I feel real happy and I could not do it without Jesus Christ and my teammates supporting me all along the way.
9:15pm England do not know where to look. England do not know what has hit them. England do not know how something that felt so good till about four hours ago, fell apart so badly in an hour and a half. It was, simply put, a very bad day at the office and they chose the worst possible moment to have that bad day. The early pace-setters in Group B, the only unbeaten team apart from Australia (before tonight), now has to pack their bags and return home.
As for the West Indies, well, take a bow. They had their backs against the wall, especially chasing 142 on what seemed a tricky wicket and against a very good bowling attack. But when backed into a corner, they did what Caribbean outfits usually do, and they came out swinging. And they came out swinging with the sort of vigour that you would associate with a team that is going to the final four.
Joseph and Matthews set the tone and England simply had no answers. They kept coming hard at England and they did so for a prolonged period, racing away to 67-0 in the powerplay and effectively killing the chase. There was a phase where the nerves would have jangled, especially once the openers were dismissed in quick succession but Dottin's 19-ball 27 calmed those nerves and gave WI the platform to romp past the finish line.
DJS Dottin b Ecclestone 27 (19m 19b 2x4 2x6) SR: 142.10
Coach Jon Lewis said it was "pretty brutal" to bow out this way and was seemingly frustrated at not getting to train at match venues
In a tournament where fast-scoring has been difficult, West Indies' opening duo put England to the sword
West Indies broke a 13-match losing streak and topped Group B to set up a semi-final against New Zealand
A win for either team will secure their place in the semi-final, and depending on the margin, South Africa could also be knocked out
Ecclestone will be England's main spin threat when they take on West Indies in a must-win contest at the World Cup