Matthews and West Indies trump Pakistan and Ameen in thrilling final-over finish

A stunning death-overs implosion from Pakistan amidst more all-round heroics from Hayley Matthews helped West Indies take an unassailable 3-0 series lead over Pakistan in the T20I series.

Another commanding half-century from Matthews – 68 off 49 balls – guided West Indies to the series’ highest total of 132 – but Pakistan were cruising at 115 for 2, spearheaded by Sidra Ameen’s 63 off 58, needing 18 off the last 23 balls. But Matthews took two wickets in as many deliveries to kick-start a stunning collapse and Pakistan lost six wickets for 10 runs in 20 deliveries. The hosts fell apart spectacularly, with West Indies sneaking home by two runs.

Pakistan won the toss and put West Indies in to bat. Fatima Sana struck early to remove Rashada Williams, but the hosts ran into the familiar brilliance of Matthews, and couldn’t find a way to stem the dazzling strokemaking that flowed. The best they could do was work around her, and although taking wickets was a problem, Pakistan’s success in keeping one end relatively quiet ensured West Indies did not get up to the 150 mark, something Matthews said the side had been aiming for.

Once Tuba Hassan managed the wicket of Matthews in the 16th over, the hosts wrested momentum back. Shermaine Campbelle edged one off Nida Dar to the keeper in the following over, and Pakistan ground the visitors down. The last six overs saw just 30 runs scored on a wicket that looked good enough to offer more, and at the halfway mark, Pakistan had the momentum.

They rode on that momentum in the second innings with a blistering opening partnership dominated by Ameen. Five boundaries in the first four overs, all struck by Ameen, saw Pakistan gallop to 39, instantly reducing the target to below a run a ball. West Indies found ways to stop the bleeding, but Pakistan never really fell behind the asking rate, ensuring they had wickets in hand and never got bogged down for too long.

A pair of tight overs from Afy Fletcher saw Ayesha Zafar hole out trying to go over long-on, but Ameen once more eased the pressure with a big 13th over, taking 11 off it and bringing up a 42-ball half-century. Pakistan appeared to have timed their push perfectly when Ameen and Dar targeted Karishma Ramharack’s 16th over, plundering 13 and bringing the equation down to 20 needed in four remaining overs, with eight wickets still in hand.

But having not won a game all series and fallen short by narrow margins a couple of times, the psychological scarring was palpable, and it made its presence felt in a frenzied final half hour. Aaliyah Alleyne cleaned up Nida Dar in the 17th over to keep West Indies alive, but Pakistani panic properly set in when Ameen missed an expansive inside out drive and Matthews knocked back the top of off. The next ball saw Fatima Sana spoon one to short cover-point, and two more wickets fell in the following over, including a needless run out that revealed the nerves that had clouded the hosts’ thoughts.

The three overs before the final one saw just eight runs scored, meaning another 12 were required in the final one. The hosts never looked like getting there, and by the time the final ball was helped away for a boundary, the game, and the series, was already beyond Pakistan.

Brief scores:
West Indies women 132 for 5 in 20 overs (Hayley Matthews 68, Shemaine  Campbelle 31, Fatima Sana 2-22, Tuba Hassan 1-31, Nida Dar 1-30) beat Pakistan women 130 for 8 in 20 overs (Sidra Ameen 63; Shamila Connel 1-26,  Afy Fletcher 2-20, Hayley Matthews 2-22, Aaliyah Alleyne 1-18) by two runs

(Cricinfo)