Hayley Matthews, the captain of the West Indies, reflected on an exceptional performance against Australia with her 132 off 64 balls steering West Indies to a record T20I chase, saying that she learned and understood her game “a lot more” from playing franchise and T20 cricket. She also believes that having the captaincy has helped take her game to another level.
She had been unbeaten on 99 in the first game and had scored 231 off 138 balls over the course of two days while also taking four wickets. She and Stafanie Taylor, the skipper before her, contributed 174 runs in 14 overs on Monday to produce an extraordinary outcome.
Hayley Matthews attributes her ‘amazing’ run of form to her leadership role.
Matthews, who played a key role in West Indies’ victory over Australia in the T20 World Cup final in 2016 while still only 18 years old, has now won seven consecutive player-of-the-match accolades in addition to providing a match-winning performance in the WCPL final just before this trip.
Today was so amazing, she said. No cricket days, in my opinion, have come close to it. Along with learning and understanding my game a lot more by playing franchise and T20 cricket on the road, the team’s leadership has unquestionably assisted me in taking ownership of my performance.
Matthews, who was only 18 years old when West Indies defeated Australia in the T20 World Cup final in 2016, has now earned seven straight player-of-the-match awards. He also delivered a match-winning performance in the WCPL final immediately before to this trip.
She exclaimed, “Today was so great. In my opinion, no cricket days have ever come close to it. Playing franchise and T20 cricket away from home has helped me grow and understand my game a lot more, and the team’s leadership has undoubtedly helped me take responsibility for my performance.
When we needed, I believe, 105 from 54 balls, Steph and I really started to consider chasing it, she added. We actually discussed trying to go as hard as we could from both ends with the wickets he had in hand at that point because of the momentum we were experiencing. She deserves praise as well because the other end received an incredible knock. It relieved a lot of my stress and kept the lines of communication open.
A poor performance by Australia fueled Matthews’ off-side strength, allowing her to frequently play through and over cover. They weren’t attempting to bowl outside, in my opinion. They may have missed it a few times, she thought. For me, that’s always the region where I’m most likely to succeed if the ball ends up there. I’m content that I managed to get a handful up there and store them as well.
Following Matthews’ four consecutive boundaries against Joss Jonassen, who had began the penultimate over requiring 25, it appeared as though West Indies would win the match. But after that, she was bowled over by her legs. Shemaine Campbelle and Chinelle Henry ultimately maintained their composure.
“It was a very long day,” she remarked. You really want to cross that line after coming so close to a score since chasing a number like 212 doesn’t happen often, especially for our team. I completely trusted Shemaine and Chin. I had no doubts because they are seasoned professionals who have been active on the circuit for a while and have just begun to shine.