Baker superb in Rugby League.
BATTING STAR Hayley Matthews says she was delighted with her first taste of captaincy after leading the Windies Women in their opening ICC official warm-up against India on Sunday.
The 20-year-old, who is expected to be announced as the official vice-captain for the Women’s Twenty20 World Cup, which bowls off on Friday in Guyana, stood in for regular skipper Stafanie Taylor in the fixture at the Coolidge Cricket Ground, which the hosts lost by five wickets.
“I enjoyed it out there. We decided to give Staf (Taylor) a rest for this match, so I was happy to be given the opportunity to lead the team,” said Matthews.
“We have a number of players in the team with lots of experience, so having them around makes the job easy for me. We all contribute and work for the team.”
TOP-SCORER
The classy right-hander topscored with a polished 41 off 37 balls – including five fours and a massive six over long-on – as the home side posted 115 for eight off their 20 overs.
She eventually fell to legspinner Poonam Yadav before left-arm spinner Radha Yadav took two quick wickets to stall the destructive Windies middle order and finish with figures of two for 13 from four overs.
Set a revised target of 75 off 12 overs, India snatched victory with three balls to spare despite an outstanding spell from medium pacer Deandra Dottin, who claimed three for 12.
“Everybody got an opportunity with bat and the ball, and that is important. Despite the loss, we got to see what we have and what the opposition India have as well,” Matthews explained.
“We are looking forward to playing in Guyana and St Lucia now. They are two great and historic grounds. We know the conditions and will have lots of support, so that should help us.”
The Windies play their second warm-up in Guyana tomorrow against New Zealand before featuring in the marquee match of a triple-header on Friday’s opening day of the tournament at the Guyana National Stadium, when they take on Bangladesh.
Matthews said the defending champions would be looking to get more out of their second warm-up ahead of their preliminary-round campaign.
“We got a lot of positives tonight (Sunday). We will move on, look to assess the conditions, and see what is required. Guyana is a great location to play, and we also get massive support,” she said.
“From there, we’ll be off to St Lucia, and that’s another great location where we always get good support as well. So the message to the fans is to come out and support us. This is a major event, and we want to put on a display for our fans.”