We’re going to win back fans after Cup flop says Stafanie
STAFANIE Taylor has called on the West Indies to make amends for their poor showing in the Women’s World Cup by excelling in the second edition of the ICC Women’s Championship.
The Windies were arguably the biggest disappointments of this summer’s World Cup in England, losing their first four matches and finishing with just two wins from seven games. That was an underwhelming performance from the reigning World T20 champions but according to Taylor, the slate has been wiped clean.
And after a convincing sixwicket victory over Sri Lanka in the first game of the Women’s Championship – the two-year tournament played between the world’s top eight teams – Taylor is hoping to win over the home fans once again.
She said: “We were shattered by our performance in the World Cup in England.We knew we let down our fans, so we want to restore their faith in us by playing to our true potential and ability during the Sri Lanka series and the remainder of the ICC Women’s Championship.
“All of the players that were involved with the last World Cup have been retained, so we are quite familiar with each other.We more or else know what makes everybody tick, and everyone is keen to get down to business and play.
“For many of us, we relish any and every opportunity we get to play, so the ICC Women’s Championship has proven to be a very important platform in the development of the women’s game in the last few years.
“The journey to reach the next Women’s World Cup starts here, so we will be taking it one match at a time. At the same time, we also have to continue to expose players and fortify our side, so it will be an interesting challenge.”
The West Indies made a confident start to the new cycle, restricting Sri Lanka to 136 all out in Trinidad with Hayley Matthews taking 3-18 and Taylor also chipping in with 3-24.
Matthews then hit 22 at the top of the order with Merissa Aguilleira finishing the job with an unbeaten 32.
They will play two more games in the series, with both today’s encounter and Sunday’s match also taking place at the Brian Lara Stadium in Trinidad.
And for Taylor it’s the chance to put things right as she continues to the lead the side in the build-up to the 2021 World Cup.
“It’s an honour to be given the privilege to lead this group of women into battle again,” she added. “The girls have always given their fullest support and it should be no different during this series.
“For me, there was bit of a rest and recuperation following a busy period which included the Women’s Cup and the Super League T20 Series, both in England.
“It’s good to be back out on the park, and for me, it will be looking for improvement and consistency, especially in the batting.
“Three-figure scores have been elusive over the last few years and this is one of the things that needs to be put right.”