Mumbai, India – Deandra Dottin didn’t become the most powerful batter in women’s cricket by accident. The West Indies allrounder revealed how she has been studying the approach of West Indies legend Sir Vivian Richards, for many years.
Dottin, a strongly-built 22-year-old, holds the world record for the fastest century in a T20 International – by a man or woman. The amazing milestone came off just 38 balls against South Africa in 2010 during the ICC Women’s T20 Championship. She is presently in India preparing for the ICC Women’s World Cup (50 overs), which bowls off later this week with matches in Mumbai and Cuttack.
She spoke of her great adoration for Sir Viv, who is one of the greatest batsmen in the history of the game. He made 8,540 Test runs in Tests and 6,721 in ODIs for West Indies in an illustrious career which spanned from 1974 to 1991. He also made 36,212 runs in first-class cricket, including 114 centuries.
"When I started to follow cricket from very young, I used to love watching him (Sir Viv) on videos. I grew up playing cricket in the road and after hearing about the great man and seeing him play, I liked his aggression. I would sit and study the way he moved and the way he hit the ball. It was great to see the way he played. I didn’t realise back then that someday I would be fortunate enough to represent the West Indies, but when I started to play I tried to do everything the way he did it," Dottin said.
"He’s obviously my hero in cricket and in all sports. For me it was more than just the runs he scored. What I liked to see was the way he walked out on the pitch, how he looked out there in the middle and the way he represented West Indies," added Dottin, who also represented Barbados in track and field and football (soccer) before she made the switch to cricket.
"He always looked in control of things. I have never seen anyone do it quite like him. I don’t try to copy everything, because I know I can’t bat like he did, but I looked at the way he showed his presence and tried to follow that. He had power and control."
West Indies had a full training session on Sunday afternoon under the guidance of Head Coach Sherwin Campbell. They will play their first warm-up match against Australia on Monday morning. The Windies will play in Group A alongside defending champions England, hosts India, and Sri Lanka. Group B will include Australia, New Zealand, Pakistan and South Africa.
Dottin said she is looking to make a mark during the tournament – which will be her second ICC Women’s World Cup. She was a member of the West Indies squad which placed fifth when the tournament was played in Australia four years ago.
"My aim is to be consistent. I have made some good scores in 50-over cricket, but I haven’t been as consistent as I should be. One of my goals is to score the most runs, but the overall goal is to win the tournament for West Indies," she said.
"The pitches in India will suit the spinners and I believe our approach to spin will be crucial. Most of the teams will be coming with a lot of spinners, so the better you handle the spin the better your results will be."
The Windies have a strong slow bowling attack – headed by experienced off-spinner Anisa Mohammed, who at age 24 is preparing for her third World Cup. She is the leading bowler in West Indies history with 89 wickets at 15.30 each in 59 ODIs. She is backed up by teenaged leg-spinner Shaquana Quintyne; left-arm spinner Shanel Daley; and the off-spin of Stafanie Taylor, the two-time winner of the ICC Women’s Player-of-the-Year award.
"We have some very good spinners in our team, some who can bowl out a team on any given day, so we have a big advantage in that department for sure," Dottin added.
FULL SQUAD:
Merissa Aguilleira (Captain)
Stafanie Taylor (Vice Captain)
Shemaine Campbelle
Shanel Daley
Deandra Dottin
Kycia Knight
Kyshona Knight
Natasha McLean
Anisa Mohammed
Subrina Munroe
Juliana Nero
June Ogle
Shaquana Quintyne
Shakera Selman
Tremayne Smartt
Team Management Unit
Sherwin Campbell – Head Coach
Pat Greenidge – Team Manager
Andre Coley – High Performance Coach
Janel Springer – Physiotherapist
Amena Highland – Fitness Trainer
Dinesh Mahabir – Video Analyst
MATCH SCHEDULE
Warm-up matches
January 28: vs Australia at MIG
January 29: vs Local XI at Mumbai Police Gymkhana
Tournament matches:
January 31: vs India at Brabourne Stadium
February 3: vs Sri Lanka at Middle Income Group Ground
February 5: vs England at Bandra Kurla Complex
Super Six matches: to be played on February 8, 10, 11, 13, 15
FINAL: February 17 at Cricket Club of India (day/night)