Day 24 Talking Points: Healy and Haynes haunt the West Indies as they fail to match their early standards

Basin Reserve, Wellington - Match 30

MATCH CENTRE|MATCH REPORT

West Indies skipper Stafanie Taylor had little choice but to bank on her bowlers continuing their good form in Powerplays when winning the toss under overcast skies.

But it was a decision that would soon come to haunt the West Indies as Alyssa Healy and Rachael Haynes put together 216 runs for the highest partnership of CWC22 and the fifth best at any Women’s World Cup.

Healy was restricted to only eight runs during the nine-over Powerplay as her opening partner did the damage early but soon found her own momentum to reach 50 off 63 balls. The star batter-keeper then punished the West Indies as her next 50 runs came from only 28 deliveries.

Healy might have just been dislodged from the No.1 spot in the MRF Tyres ODI batting rankings but if she backs up the semi-final form that took her to 129 runs off 107 balls, she is sure to have a big say in which team claims the CWC22 trophy on Sunday.

While Australia’s top-order have piled on the runs Beth Mooney has made the most of her opportunities to compile her own 268 while only being dismissed twice in eight innings, and was unbeaten on 43 off 31 balls against West Indies.

Mooney plays a crucial role with the bat that can change depending on the match situation but also sets the highest of standards in the field and has the most catches at CWC22 with seven.

The 28-year-old took her best catch yet when fielding at short square leg and reacting quickly to a hard hit from Rashada Williams, diving to her right to claim a brilliant one-hander when the ball was already past her.

Amy Satterthwaite (NZ) and Lydia Greenway (England) hold the record for the most catches at a Women’s World Cup with eight, but with the final still to come Mooney is well-placed to add her name to the record books as well as highlights reels.

West Indies fall short after promising start

West Indies got off to a flying start at CWC22 as they upset the hosts New Zealand in the opening match of the tournament then backed that up against the defending champions England.

Some stellar performances with bat and ball by Hayley Matthews and sensational catching by Deandra Dottin helped light up the early stages of the tournament but from there the team couldn’t reach the same heights.

One more victory over Pakistan and a point from an abandoned match with South Africa secured West Indies a place in the knockout stages but once the semi-final started they were quickly outclassed by Australia and even Matthews and Dottin were seen dropping simple chances in the field.

While West Indies showed that at their best they can beat some of the top teams there is clearly still ground to be made up to compete with the true elite.