West Indies will face defending champions Australia in the 5th edition final of the Women’s World Twenty20 at Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Sunday.
The match will start at 3:00pm Bangladesh time.
Record shows that Australia, thee times winner of the ICC Women’s World Championship, are the clear favourites in the final while West Indies will go for their maiden tile after three straight semifinal defeats — two of them to Australia (2012 and ’14).
West Indies skipper Stafanie Taylor said, “We’re very much excited as it is the first final for us.”
“I know there are going to be some nerves around. We just have to embrace it, try to be calm and composed, and just go out there and fight for it,” Taylor added.
“In T20s, you have to be flexible,” said Taylor. “You only have 20 overs. Depending on what the situation is, you see which batter is suited for that.”
“We needed somebody to give us a push in the last game, and Britney Cooper helped us doing just that…….that was a fantastic knock by her.”
Taylor spoke of how surprised she had been to see Cooper come in at number 3 and she struck 61 from 48 balls to set up the game for a 6-run victory in the 2nd semifinal against New Zealand at Wankhede, Mumbai on Thursday last.
Taylor’s side will need more of the same in the final, against a team that have not conceded a defeat in the previous eight matches in this format, including the last time the two teams met in a bilateral series in Australia in late 2014.
“There’s no doubt that we like winning as a team,” said Australian skipper Meg Lanning.
“Each tournament is very different, so it’s hard to compare the last three to the build-up to this game. We’re a very competitive side and anything we do, we love to win and want to win,” Lanning added.
“We’ve certainly done our homework on the big players, but certainly don’t think that they’re (WI) the ones who’re going to win the games for them. They’re a settled team that have been playing some good cricket, so we’re going to have to keep an eye out for all of them,” Lanning observed.
“The hunger in the side is as good as it’s ever been, and we can’t wait to get out there and take on West Indies tomorrow,” Lanning expressed their hunger for title.
Australia confirmed their final berth eliminating England by 5 runs in the first semifinal at Feroz Shah Kotla, Delhi on Wednesday last.
Australia Women’s XI (probable): Meg Lanning (captain), Elyse Villani, Alyssa Healy, Alex Blackwell, Ellyse Perry, Jess Jonassen, Beth Mooney, Erin Osborne, Megan Schutt, Kristen Beams and Rene Farrell.
West Indies Women’s XI (probable): Stafanie Taylor (captain), Hayley Matthews, Britney Cooper, Deandra Dottin, Stacy-Ann King, Merissa Aquilleira, Shemaine Campbelle, Shaquana Quintyne, Afy Fletcher, Anisa Mohammed and Shamilia Connell.
