West Indies overcome spirited Scotland for second straight win

West Indies overcame a spirited challenge from Scotland to edge to a seven-run win in the ICC Women’s World Cup 2026 Group B clash in Headingley on Thursday.

After Stafanie Taylor’s late heroics with the bat lifted West Indies to 153/6, Scotland made a run for it with a strong start. Despite a gritty half-century by Darcey Carter, Scotland fell short at 146 in 20 overs.

It was second straight win for the West Indies, and helped them climb to No 2 in Group B standings.

Opting to field first, Scotland suffocated the West Indies with disciplined bowling that played to their field. Though West Indies has some big hitters at the top of the order, they weren’t able to break free.

The Caribbean side only had four boundaries in powerplay and posted 33/1 in the first six overs.

Katherine Fraser was in the thick of things early on, as she pulled off a stunning catch at the boundary to dismiss Qiana Joseph and castled Hayley Matthews.

After leading West Indies to a win against New Zealand in their match with an unbeaten, Campbelle was once against amongst the runs, registering 36 off 26. She steadied the innings with a 35-run stand with Deandra Dottin, playing her milestone 150th T20I on the day, for the third wicket.

West Indies turned it around in the last five overs, recovering from 85/5 to 153/6.

While Jahzara Claxton set the ball rolling with the first six of the innings, it was Taylor’s late charge that took them past 150.

Taylor used the crease well to make space and free her arms for a few big hits. West Indies plundered 29 runs in the last two overs, with Taylor signing off with two big hits to the fence in the final over. She finished unbeaten at 47 off just 19 balls.

For Scotland, Fraser was the most successful with 2/34, while Kathryn Bryce, Rachel Slater and Kirstie Gordon contributed with a wicket each.

In reply, Scotland came out all guns blazing. Fraser and Darcey Carter took on the West Indian pacers and motored to 51 in the first five overs.

But Matthews turned the match on its head with two wickets in the sixth over. She provided the breakthrough by crashing through Fraser’s defence as the batter attempted a slog sweep. Two balls later, she dismissed her opposite number Kathryn Bryce.

The bright start came undone as Scotland lost four wickets in the space of seven runs, slipping to 58/4.

From there on, it was an uphill task for the Scots. However, Carter kept them in the hunt with a dogged 59 off 62 balls. Though she was hobbled with a cramp for a long part of the innings, she brought up her first T20 World Cup half-century.

Her 58-run partnership for the sixth wicket with Ailsa Lister took them within striking distance.

However, Aaliyah Alleyne made sure there was no late comeback, as she packed off Carter, Lister and Kirstie Gordon in the penultimate over. It was chaotic at the end, with West Indies feeling the nerves in the field, but they held on for a seven-run win.

Defending an under-par total, West Indian spinners came to the fore, bowling with precision and purpose to set up victory. Matthews rallied the team around with an outstanding 3/19, while Alleyne finished with 3/11 in two overs. Leg-spinner Afy Fletcher, meanwhile, chipped in with 2/16.