LAHORE, Pakistan – In a end that can hang-out the West Indies Ladies for years to come back, their desires of competing within the 2025 ICC Ladies’s World Cup had been shattered in a blaze of boundaries and brutal arithmetic.
Regardless of a wide ranging run chase towards Thailand, the regional aspect missed qualification by a mere 4 deliveries, with Web Run Price (NRR) proving their final undoing.
Needing to overtake Thailand’s 166 all out in 46.1 overs in simply 10.1 overs to outstrip Bangladesh on NRR and safe the ultimate qualification spot, the West Indies Ladies responded with firepower and aptitude—reaching 168 for 4 in 10.5 overs. The chase was valiant. The heartbreak, immeasurable.
Margins and Arithmetic: When factors weren’t sufficient
The 2 groups—West Indies and Bangladesh—ended the match tied on six factors, however the Caribbean outfit’s NRR of 0.626 fell simply shy of Bangladesh’s 0.639.
It was an agonizing finish, particularly contemplating that the Windies bowlers allowed Thailand’s final 4 wickets so as to add an important 81 runs—a cushion that in the end tipped the stability.
– Commercial –
“We knew what we needed to do, and we got here out swinging,” mentioned a dissatisfied however proud Hayley Matthews post-match. “It hurts, however I’m happy with the way in which the crew fought.”
Matthews and Joseph ignite Gaddafi with blazing begin
After Pakistan’s dominant seven-wicket win over Bangladesh earlier within the day opened the door to qualification, Matthews received the toss at Gaddafi Stadium and elected to subject—understanding that solely an enormous margin of victory would suffice.
Thailand’s openers provided early resistance, reaching 64 for one, earlier than a triple menace of Afy Fletcher (4-20), Aliyah Alleyne (3-41), and Ashmini Munisar (2-15) sparked a dramatic collapse to 85 for six. However the West Indies had been left pissed off by Natthakan Chantham’s gutsy 66, which powered Thailand to a aggressive 166.
Nonetheless, the Windies had one job left: 167 runs in 10.1 overs—a near-impossible activity that they embraced with fearless urgency.
The Hayley hurricane: Blistering 70 in 29 rocks Lahore
What adopted was a stunning show of power-hitting not often seen in girls’s ODIs. Matthews launched into a wide ranging assault, plundering 70 from 29 balls, laced with 11 boundaries and two sixes. She and Rashada Williams (26) tore into the Thailand assault, taking 63 runs within the first 4 overs and sparking perception.
Matthews reached her half-century in simply 21 deliveries, treating medium pacer Chanida Sutthiruang to a trio of boundaries within the fifth over. When she fell within the seventh over, West Indies had been 105 for 2—properly forward of the run price, however more and more tight on time.
Race towards the clock: Drama to the ultimate supply
With 21 wanted off the ultimate three balls to remain alive within the match, the duty moved past even the explosive talents of Stafanie Taylor, who managed a towering six however couldn’t cease the clock from operating out. The Windies reached 168 for 4 in 10.5 overs—simply 4 balls too late.
“We gave it the whole lot,” mentioned Taylor. “We had been swinging for the fences, however right this moment wasn’t our day.”
When each run mattered: The cruelty of Web Run Price
Web Run Price, typically a footnote, grew to become the ultimate decide. And whereas Pakistan did their half by beating Bangladesh, it wasn’t sufficient. West Indies wanted not solely to win, however to obliterate the goal—and so they virtually did.
However “virtually” doesn’t earn a aircraft ticket to the World Cup.
