BRIDGETOWN, Barbados, CMC – Off-spinner Anisa Mohammed undermined the Sri Lanka batting with a five-wicket haul to spur West Indies Women to a resounding 88-run win over Sri Lanka Women in the first One-Day International here yesterday.
After solid half-centuries from the trio of Shanel Daley, skipper Merissa Aguilleira and Stafanie Taylor lifted West Indies to 228 for six off the allotted 50 overs on an easy-paced Kensington Oval pitch, Mohammed wreaked havoc in grabbing five for 34 off 9.2 overs as the Sri Lankans were dismissed for 140 in 42.3 overs.
Vice-captain Taylor, who holds the top spot in the Reliance ICC Women’s ODI Rankings for batters, set the stage with a knock of 53 before she was second out with the score 93 in the 25th over after West Indies won the toss. She faced 97 balls and hit five boundaries.
Taylor’s Jamaican compatriot Daley and Trinidadian Aguilleira then featured in a fourth wicket partnership of 52 in 11.2 overs after the usually attacking Barbadian Deandra Dottin fell for 14.
Left-hander Daley, daughter of the former Jamaica fast-medium bowling all-rounder of the 1980s, Aaron Daley, top-scored with 63 off 97 balls inclusive of three fours to earn the Player-of-the-Match award.
Aguilleira was dismissed off the very last ball of the innings for 62, which came off 63 deliveries and contained six boundaries.
Maduri Sammudika took two for 39 and Chamani Seneviratne 2-40.
The 23-year-old Daley said she was pleased with the team’s overall performance.
“We played exactly the way we wanted to today. We came here and got a very good pitch, and we made the most of it with the bat.
“We had a camp before the series and one of the roles I was given was to bat through the innings and allow the others to bat around me.”
Daley added: “That worked very well and we did a lot of good things. I was able to rotate the strike with Stafanie and the right-hand/left- hand combination was just what was required at that stage. “Earlier this year, when we played against India, I didn’t get as many (runs) as I felt I should and I really wanted to buckle down in this series and cement the No.3 spot. I want to make that position mine and I have the chance to do that in this series.
“I had a chance to get a hundred and I wasn’t able to convert it. Going forward, I plan to make the next start count. I am yet to make a century for West Indies, so I don’t plan to let another opportunity like this get away.”
Sri Lanka were under early pressure at 28 for three by the end of the tenth over and despite a recovery by skipper Dilani Manodara, who topscored with 37 and Shashikala Siriwardena (34), who put on 67 in 18.1 overs for the fourth wicket, a collapse set in once they were parted. The last seven wickets tumbled for 45 runs in 14.2 overs.
Seamer Tremayne Smartt of Guyana picked up two for 24 off six overs to cause the early problems before Trinidadian Mohammed came into her own.
