West Indies ride Hetmyer’s good form, Shepherd’s hat-trick to victory against Scotland
West Indies 182 for 5 (Hetmyer 64, King 35; Currie 2-23) beat Scotland 147 all out (Berrington 42, Bruce 35; Shepherd 5-20) by 35 runs
Shimron Hetmyer did not arrive in India with the West Indies team earlier this week after he was left stranded with visa issues in South Africa following their T20 International series. The left-hander, however, turned up in time to deliver a player-of-the-match performance, which got the Caribbean side off to a winning start at the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup.
“That part is irrelevant; he was here,” Captain Shai Hope beamed in the post-match presser. Hetmyer beat Chris Gayle’s record for the fastest fifty (22 balls) by a West Indian at the World Cup on his way to a 36-ball 64. West Indies’ new No.3 strode to the crease with his side in a scuffle at 54 for 1 in the ninth. In his knocks of 75 and 48 in that position against South Africa, the Guyanese struck at 192.2.
“Hetty, again he's been in some tremendous form; he's been consistent. We asked him to go out in the number three position and show a bit more responsibility, and he's taken it [on], as you can see,” Hope continued.
“We know how good of a player he is, and I don't think we were maximizing his true potential all the way down [the order]. So we just asked him to do the job. I'm glad that he accepted the challenge, and it's great to see him playing the way Hetty normally plays. Hopefully he can continue throughout the tournament and give us that nice start that we asked for.”
Afghanistan 182 for 6 (Ibrahim 51, Gurbaz 43; Chase 1-18) beat West Indies 159 for 7 (Forde 52*, Powell 32; Mujeeb 2-19) by 23 runs
The West Indies suffered a 23-run loss to Afghanistan in their only warm-up contest ahead of the ICC T20 World Cup on Wednesday at the BCCI Centre of Excellence 1 in Bengaluru, India, after a flurry of quick wickets stifled Shai Hope’s side’s chase of 183.
Afghanistan’s target was built on the foundations set by Ibrahim Zadran (51) and Rahmanullah Gurbaz (43), who both maintained strike rates above 150 during their 90-run opening stand.
Azmatullah Omarzai’s 15-ball 35 provided the innings with impetus towards the end as three of Afghanistan’s batters retired out.
West Indies’ innings stuttered in response as they fell to 54 for five in the eighth over and 82 for seven in the 14th courtesy of an all-round effort from Afghanistan’s bowling attack.
Matthew Forde’s blistering unbeaten 52 only served to save his side from a heavy defeat, as the Caribbean side was defeated nonetheless.
The West Indies bowl off their World Cup campaign against Scotland at Eden Gardens on Saturday.
Cricket West Indies on Monday confirmed that it has “resolved legal matters” with former West Indies wicketkeeper-batsman Shane Dowrich. Dowrich filed a loss-of-earnings lawsuit in the High Court of Barbados in January 2024, seeking close to US$172,000 in damages. The terms of the settlement agreement will remain confidential.
The suit stemmed “from Dowrich’s early return from the New Zealand tour of 2020,” his then ineligibility for selection, and the subsequent non-renewal of his central playing contract.
Chief Executive Officer Chris Dehring confirms that the 34-year-old was recently added to West Indies’ wicket-keeping coaching staff.
"CWI is pleased that an agreement has been reached and welcomes Shane to be part of its coaching structure as he moves into further professional development," Dehring said.
Jamaica were crowned champions of the 2026 Cricket West Indies Women’s Super50 Cup following Saturday’s final round of matches. The 8-wicket victory over the Leeward Islands was Jamaica’s second of the season, which had been abbreviated to three rounds. Guyana and Trinidad & Tobago were the other winners on the day.
Jamaica 149 for 2 (Scott 47, McKenzie 39; Maynard 2-37) beat Leewards 146 all out (Boyce 37, Claxton 29; Nation 4-23) by eight wickets
The Leeward Islands were dismissed for 146 in 37.4 overs in the game reduced to 40-overs-a-side at Sion Hill. Reniece Boyce (37) top-scored for the Leewards, sharing in a 63-run third-wicket partnership with skipper Amanda Edwards (27).
All-rounders Jahzara Claxton (29) and Shawnisha Hector (17) put on 49 for the fourth wicket to help Leewards to what had previously proved to be a defendable score in the tournament. Chedean Nation (4/23) led Jamaica’s attack, while Celina Whyte (2/19) and Stafanie Taylor (2/34) each took two wickets.
A 94-run opening stand between Lena Scott (47) and Chrishana McKenzie (39) kept Jamaica ahead of the chase before captain Rashada Williams (26) and Taylor (19) saw them to victory at 149 for 2 with 32 deliveries to spare.
The Windward Islands sit atop the standings following Thursday’s second round of the Cricket West Indies Women’s Super50 Cup, being contested in St. Vincent and the Grenadines. They defeated the Leeward Islands, while defending champions Trinidad & Tobago and Jamaica earned their first wins of the campaign, defeating Guyana and Barbados, respectively.
Windwards 126 for 7 (Glasgow 54*, Mckie 22; Hector 2-22) beat Leewards 125 all out (Joseph 44, Claxton 25; Gasper 3-28) by 3 wickets
Stand-in captain Jannillea Glasgow turned in another all-round performance to help the Windwards to a 3-wicket win over rivals the Leewards at the Cumberland Playing Field.
Aldith Gasper first grabbed 3 for 28 to help dismiss the Leewards for 125 in 34.5 overs despite 44 from opener Qiana Joseph. Shanel Mckie (2/12) and Glasgow (2/23) had two wickets apiece before returning to anchor the Windwards chase.
Glasgow hit an unbeaten 54, while Shanel Mckie contributed 22 batting at no. 8 to help the Windwards to victory at 126 for 7 in 34.1 overs. Shawnisha Hector (2/22) was the pick of the Leewards bowlers.
