GROS ISLET, St Lucia, CMC – An unbroken 44-run partnership between Kyshona Knight and Anisa Mohammed pulled West Indies Women out of trouble and lifted them to an exciting three-wicket victory over Pakistan Women in the second One-Day International here late Sunday night.
Chasing a modest target of 150 at the Beausejour Cricket Stadium, West Indies Women slumped to 106 for seven in the 34th over, with all of their frontline batsmen already dismissed.
Photo by WICB Media/Randy Brooks of Brooks Latouche Photography
However, Knight struck a bold 28 not out and Player-of-the-Match Anisa Mohammed, an unbeaten 19, to defy pressure and a confident Pakistan Women attack, to see the Caribbean side over the line with 19 deliveries remaining.
Under pressure, Knight dug deep, facing 65 deliveries and striking a four and a six while Mohammed occupied the crease for 42 balls and counted two fours to offer great support.
Captain Stafanie Taylor top-scored with a fluent 49 from 89 balls but no other batsman made it into double figures.
With the result, Windies Women levelled the four-match series at 1-1 but more importantly, snared the two precious ICC Championship points on offer.
Sent in earlier, Pakistan Women collapsed to 149 all out off 46.1 overs, with Nain Abidi hammering 48 off 82 deliveries and Bismah Maroof getting 28 off 74 balls, before retiring hurt.
The visitors were 127 for three in the 38th over but slumped badly, losing their last seven wickets for 22 runs.
Off-spinners Hayley Matthews (2-22) and Mohammed (2-24) picked up two wickets apiece while Taylor, also bowling off-spin, strangled the Pakistani batsmen with a ten-over spell which cost just 25 runs and yielded a wicket.
West Indies Women struck early removing both openers Marina Iqbal (15) and Javeria Khan (4) with just 25 runs on the board in the eighth over.
Abidi and Bismah then put on the most productive stand of the innings, adding 56 for the third wicket to revive the innings.
The tone of the innings changed, however, once Bismah limped out of the contest in the 24th over, and though captain Sana Mir (8) helped extend the partnership to 76, West Indies Women steadily made inroads.
Seamer Asmavia Iqbal (2-17) then knocked over the two West Indies Women openers, Kycia Knight (6) and Matthews (9) cheaply with the score on 33 before Taylor and Deandra Dottin (9) steadied the innings in a 36-run stand.
Taylor was the protagonist, stroking six fours and appearing set for a big score before she was one of five wickets to fall for 37 runs in the space of 75 balls.
Left-arm spinner Anam Amin was the main destroyer, claiming four for 27 from her 10 overs, to trigger the slide.
She started by bowling Merissa Aguilleira for five with the score on 81 in the 26th over before removing Taylor in the 30th and then trapping Britney Cooper (7) and Stacy-Ann King 90) lbw off successive deliveries in the 34th over.
Kyshona and Mohammed then rallied the innings brilliantly, to get West Indies home with overs ticking away.
The third ODI is set for tomorrow at the same venue start at 2 pm.
