West Indies ensured they will face England at Lord’s on Wednesday boasting the same unbeaten record as the hosts after victory over Sri Lanka in Bristol in their third ICC Women’s T20 World Cup group game.
The Windies recorded a five-wicket win over Sri Lanka inside 16.1 overs after their opponents had set them a low run chase of 98 all out.
Securing their third victory from three games in Group 2, Stafanie Taylor led the way with the bat after a slow West Indies start of 70-5, with an unbeaten 27 off 25 balls.
West Indies join England on six points at the summit of Group 2, with the tournament hosts top outright on net run-rate, ahead of their meeting at Lord’s on Wednesday evening.
Winning captain Hayley Matthews took 3-15 and said: “It was a crucial toss. We definitely felt like it had a bit of tennis-ball bounce early on, so really good that we got to bowl and take advantage of that.
“I don’t think we had any nerves at any point in time [chasing 98]. Probably would have liked to chase it down a bit more convincingly but chasing totals like that can always be a bit tricky.
“At the same time, I certainly feel like our batters are going to have the opportunity to peak at the right time. What’s really important is that we are winning matches right now.”
How it stands after three games in the group
Fifth-placed Sri Lanka remain on two points along with New Zealand and Scotland with just one win so far.
They will stay in Bristol to play winless Ireland – who are officially eliminated from semi-final contention – on Tuesday in what represents a must-win match for them to realistically keep any hopes of finishing in the top two positions alive.
Nilakshi de Silva hit 30 off 26 balls for Sri Lanka before losing her wicket to Afy Fletcher, while Imesha Dulani took two wickets as they tried to stay in the match.
Kapp powers South Africa to victory
Marizanne Kapp struck a superb unbeaten 81 to guide South Africa to a six-wicket win over India that boosts their hopes of a place in the semi-finals of the Women’s T20 World Cup.
Replying to India’s 158-7, South Africa got off to a poor start, losing captain Laura Wolvaardt for 20 and then Annerie Dercksen for a duck, both victims of Shree Charani, as they ended the powerplay on 25-2.
But that brought Kapp to the crease and the veteran all-rounder smashed four sixes and seven fours as she made 81no off 45 balls to take the game away from India, with her partnership with Tazmin Brits worth 97 runs as momentum shifted decisively.
Earlier Kapp had taken 2-27 as several India batters failed to capitalise on strong starts.
Shafali Verma was their top scorer on 31, while captain Harmanpreet Kaur made 24 on the day she became the first player, male or female, to make 200 T20I appearances.
The win lifts South Africa up to third in the Group 1 table, level on points with second-placed India and two points behind leaders Australia.
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