LONDON (AP) — Host England was first into the Women’s Twenty20 World Cup semifinals with a group match to spare after beating the West Indies by 38 runs at sweltering Lord’s on Wednesday.
Both former one-time champions came to the matchup unbeaten, and Danni Wyatt-Hodge batted England out of reach with 65 off 42 balls. Wyatt-Hodge is the tournament’s leading run-scorer with 193, averaging 65.
The West Indies can still advance if it beats winless Ireland in its last group match on Saturday.
On the hottest June day on record in Britain the evening game started at 35 degrees C and an air temperature of 41 C, and England made an impressive 186-7, the highest women’s T20 total at Lord’s and the second highest by a men’s or women’s side.
No team has chased down 187 at a World Cup and West Indies was limited to 148-5. The required run rate was at 10 after only two overs and after 69-4 in the 11th over the team appeared to have no interest in attacking the target despite a sloppy fielding effort by England.
Wyatt-Hodge, who launched the tournament two weeks ago with a century against Sri Lanka, smacked a 32-ball fifty. She should have been run out on 58 and caught on 59 and was finally run out on 65 by partner Heather Knight. She hit eight boundaries.
“I’m happy it was my night tonight,” Wyatt-Hodge said. “That was the hottest I’ve played in here in England. Felt like Dubai a couple of years ago (2024 T20 World Cup). But I enjoyed it, we came out all guns blazing.”
Knight, dropped on 14, added 43 from 26 before she was run out, too.
West Indies captain Hayley Matthews was furious to be given out on review on 14 in the fourth over. There was a spike on UltraEdge despite a clear gap between bat and ball, and Matthews, who argued with the umpire because she didn’t believe she touched the ball, said afterward she respected the umpire’s decision.
Deandra Dottin was caught in the deep on 19 and Shemaine Campbelle was bowled on 20 and the West Indies appeared to go into a shell. A late unbeaten 51 off 30 came from Chinelle Henry when the result was already certain.
Henry was dropped on 10, 28 and 45 among six dropped catches by England, its most in a T20 match in two years.
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