Roseau, Dominica –Stafanie Taylor again proved why she is rated as the best women’s cricketer in the world, producing another superb batting performance to guide the West Indies Women to a series-levelling victory over South Africa in the fifth and final One-Day International on Tuesday.
The 21-year-old made a top score of 76 off 93 balls – including four boundaries – as the West Indies made 177-8 off 50 overs. They then bowled out South Africa Women for 155 to win by 22 runs at Windsor Park. It was a great result for the Windies, who came back from 0-2 down to level the series with one match being washed out.
"I didn’t really feel any pressure today. I just went out and looked to dig in. It was a good pitch to bat on and I knew once I got in I could get a major score," said Taylor, who won the Player-of-the-Match and Player-of-the-Series awards.
"That is not to say it was easy – I had to be watchful throughout. In the end it felt really good to win the match by a comfortable margin and level the series. We are delighted in our dressing room."
Taylor added 117 for the second wicket with pint-sized Shemaine Campbell, who made a 47 off 64 balls including some classic off-side strokes.
"The wash-out hurt us. After we went 0-2 down in St Kitts we knew we had to bounce back. We came here to Dominica determined to win all three [matches]. We won the third match and had them under pressure in the fourth," added Taylor, who is the Number 1 allrounder in the International Cricket Council’s One-Day rankings.
Earlier in the series, Taylor became the first West Indian woman to reach 2,000 runs in One-Day Internationals. This is another milestone in the career of the two-time ICC Women’s Cricketer-of-the-Year award winner.
"We came here today and did a great job to win the last match. In our eyes we won the series. To bounce back in this style says a lot about our team and the heart we have. This is great momentum going into the World Cup in India," she said.
The two teams travel to St Lucia on Wednesday where they will play back-to-back T20 Internationals on Saturday and Sunday. Both matches start at 4 pm (3 pm Jamaica Time).
Fans in the region can watch matches live on ESPN Caribbean – the broadcast partner of the West Indies Cricket Board. Additional coverage is available on ESPN’s Networks in the UK, Australia, Middle East and Africa. In Canada, fans can see the action via the Titan GSG Media Corporation.