West Indies Women crushed Zimbabwe Women by eight wickets in the second T20I of the three match series in Harare. After being invited to bat first, Zimbabwe Women managed to score only 106/7 in 20 overs. Jahzara Claxton (3/14 in 2 overs) was the best bowler for West Indies Women, while Afy Fletcher and Stafanie Taylor also took one wicket each. Beloved Biza was Zimbabwe Women’s top scorer.
In reply, West Indies Women lost a few wickets, but a blazing half-century from Eboni Brathwaite helped them finish the chase with 65 balls to spare. The victory gave West Indies Women an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match T20I series.
Zimbabwe Struggle After a Steady Start
Zimbabwe won the toss and decided to bat first. Openers Kelis Ndhlovu and Beloved Biza started carefully. They put together a 46-run partnership. Afy Fletcher broke the stand in the ninth over. Zimbabwe then sent Chipo Mugeri-Tiripano to the crease at No. 3. Mugeri-Tiripano continued the team's steady start. She added runs with Biza before Claxton trapped Biza lbw in the 13th over. Zimbabwe's top three batters all passed 20. However, the remaining five batters failed to reach double figures. Christine Mutasa fell lbw on the very next delivery after Biza's dismissal. Mugeri-Tiripano continued to fight. She scored 25 from 28 balls. Claxton ended her resistance in the final over. Mugeri-Tiripano ran out during the over. Claxton then claimed another wicket from the final ball of the innings. She finished with excellent figures of 3 for 14. Zimbabwe ended their innings at 106.Brathwaite Destroys Zimbabwe's Bowling Attack
West Indies needed only 107 runs to win. Their batters attacked from the start. They scored 69 runs for two wickets during the powerplay. Brathwaite led the charge. She scored 57 runs from just 23 balls. Her innings included six sixes and three fours. She also maintained a remarkable strike rate of 247.82. rathwaite fell on the penultimate delivery of the powerplay. However, West Indies had already moved well ahead in the chase.West Indies Complete Comfortable Series Win
West Indies lost no more wickets after Brathwaite's dismissal. Realeanna Grimmond and Stefanie Taylor finished the chase together. The pair scored the remaining 38 runs in only 3.2 overs. West Indies reached the target with eight wickets in hand and 65 deliveries remaining. The emphatic victory secured the T20I series for West Indies with one match still to play.Brief Scorecard
West Indies Women are playing good cricket. Jahzara Claxton continued her impressive bowling performance, while Eboni Brathwaite’s blazing knock changed the game and ended any hopes Zimbabwe Women had of making a comeback.
Zimbabwe Women, on the other hand, need to improve both their batting and bowling. Their batters failed to score at a convincing rate, while their bowlers could not make much of an impact. They need to work hard to get back on the winning track. Stay tuned with JUSZNEWS for regular updates!