KARACHI: West Indies women hammered Pakistan by 113 runs courtesy of their skipper and the player of the match, Hayley Matthews’ all-round display, who scored a brilliant 140 not out and took three wickets in the one-sided first ODI at the National Bank Stadium.
After putting up a healthy total, West Indies did not allow the Pakistani batters to settle for being sharp with the ball and in the field as the green shirts, while chasing 270 on a slow surface, could not find rhythm as the Windies bowlers kept striking at regular intervals.
Sidra Ameen was the first to be dismissed with just seven runs on the board by Chinelle Henry. The experienced campaigner, Bismah Maroof, was shown the door after she edged a simple catch to the wicketkeeper on Shamilia Connell. Skipper Nida Dar (19) edged to keeper Williams, while the dismissal of the well-set Muneeba Ali (22) made things worse as her run-out left Pakistan tottering at 65-4.
The home team batters did get the starts, but the tight and accurate bowling from the Windies bowlers did not allow them to play big innings. Aliya Riaz (16), Najiha Alvi (20) and Tuba Hassan (25) all failed to rescue Pakistan despite looking in good touch as the home team got bowled out for 156 in 35.5 overs. For the Windies, skipper Matthews was the pick of the bowlers with three wickets for 17, Afy Fletcher took two, while Connell and Henry took one.
Earlier, West Indies, after electing to bat first, were rescued by their captain Matthews, who played an exceptional knock that had both the rotation of strike as well as some classical shot-making.
Opener Rashida Williams got removed for one, but Matthews and Campbelle (45) forged a 102-run stand for the second wicket. However, two successive wickets by Tuba Hassan of Campbelle and Stafanie Taylor did bring hope for Pakistan, but Matthews kept the scoreboard ticking.
Apart from Matthews and Campbell, the other batters did get the starts but failed to capitalize on that. Chedean Nation (17), Henry (23) and Alleyne (17) tried to make quick runs but could not succeed. Henry handed the catch to Diana Baig while the other two got run out. But, skipper Matthews’ bat continued to flow runs that helped West Indies post a competitive total.
For Pakistan, Sadia Iqbal was the pick of the bowlers, picking up two for 38 in 10 overs, and Nida Dar took one for 43. Nashra, who took one and Tooba Hassan, who took two, went a touch expensive.