A new name will be inscribed on the Women’s T20 World Cup on Sunday night after New Zealand booked a showdown with South Africa in the final.
Eden Carson took three crucial wickets as the White Ferns beat the 2016 T20 world champions West Indies by eight runs in a thrilling semi-final at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium.
Victory for New Zealand, who lost 10 games in a row in the lead up to this competition, guaranteed there will be a first-time winners of the title.
They were runners-up in the first two 20-over World Cups, while South Africa were beaten on their first appearance in a final last time out.
Indeed, Sunday’s big decider at Dubai International Stadium will be the first time in the history of women’s international cricket that one of either England or Australia have not been present in a major final.
West Indies ended England’s chances in the final match of the pool stage, while Australia saw their long run of dominance in this particular event ended on Thursday night.
After seeing her side’s pursuit of a fourth successive T20 World Cup title ended by an inspired South Africa in Dubai, injured Australia captain Alyssa Healy had been magnanimity personified.
Downcast though she was by their semi-final loss, she pointed out that the prospect of having a new name on the trophy can only be good for the women’s game. That is exactly what is set to come to pass.
Australia’s exit the night before might have served to sharpen the focus of the two semifinalists in Sharjah even more acutely. With The Invincibles out of the picture, maybe the trophy felt within reach.
It was intriguing to see how that might manifest itself in the performance of the two sides. If there was any added tension, it certainly was not apparent from looking at the West Indians ahead of play.
When Under Pressure by Queen was blaring out of the stadium sound system while they were doing their warm ups, a number of West Indies players were bopping along.
Similarly, New Zealand seemed unperturbed by the gravity of the fixture, focused as they were instead on a game of keepy-uppy with a football.
When the action started, though, it was fierce competition. It was a bruising night for both teams.
Chinelle Henry, the West Indies batter, suffered a sickening blow to the face in dropping a catch on the boundary, after losing the flight of the ball in the floodlights.
Play was stopped as she was treated on the field, then she had to be helped off, and she was later replaced by a concussion sub.
Shortly after that scare, Brooke Halliday, the left-hander in New Zealand’s middle-order, needed lengthy treatment when she was hit by a powerful throw while completing a second run.
Both incidents served to bring about wickets straight away. After the Henry one, Melie Kerr fell to the very next delivery, while the same thing also happened to Halliday.
Both were victims of Deandra Dottin. The West Indies all-rounder reversed her retirement earlier this year with this competition in mind, and she showed she still belongs on the big stage. She took 4-22 as the New Zealanders were limited to 128-9, after opener Georgia Plimmer had top scored with 33.
That may not appear the most daunting target, but it was clear that scoring was again a struggle at the UAE’s most historic cricket venue.
The West Indies batting line up is packed with power and experience, but even they could not find a formula to up the scoring rate sufficiently. Chasing on this ground is always a tough assignment.
The contrast to their previous outing could not have been starker. Back then, openers Qiana Joseph and Hayley Matthews had razed England’s bowlers and sent them spiralling out of the competition.
Joseph, the hero of that win, did enjoy some early success, and she took two fours off Carson. After the second of those, though, she was undone by a fine piece of off-spin bowling by the same bowler.
Carson, a 23-year-old from the south of New Zealand, then put her side in the box seat as she accounted for both Shermaine Campbelle and Stafanie Taylor.
When Matthews then holed out to Kerr on the boundary, off the bowling of Lea Tahuhu, West Indies were 51-4 with just a ball remaining in the 11th over.
It meant they required 78 from 55 balls. If that seemed an unlikely equation, the presence of Dottin at the wicket meant it was at least not impossible.
The seasoned all-rounder smashed three sixes – extending her record in this tournament for sixes in the process – to breath some hope into the run chase.
All that hope appeared lost when she fell to Kerr’s leg-spin, though. Kerr ended with handsome figures of 2-14, to go with the crucial catch she held to get rid of Matthews.
There was still an outside chance. West Indies needed 15 to win off the last, and Suzie Bates was brought on to bowl her first over of the tournament.
New Zealand nerves were racing as he was hit for four off the first ball by Zaida James, but she dismissed her off the third as victory was sealed.
