West Indies Women’s captain Hayley Matthews is poised for a strong showing at the upcoming Women’s T20 World Cup as she seeks to claim the number one spot in the ICC T20 batting rankings.
Currently ranked third, Matthews is eyeing the top position held by Australia’s Beth Mooney, with the tournament presenting a perfect opportunity to make her mark.
The T20 World Cup kicked off on Thursday, with the West Indies facing South Africa in their opening match on Friday. Matthews, already the top-ranked all-rounder in the world, is only 11 points behind second-placed Tahlia McGrath and 22 points behind Mooney, who currently leads the batting rankings with 757 points.
Competition remains fierce
The 26-year-old Matthews, on a career-high 746 points, will be aiming to overtake the Australian duo and become the first non-Australian player to hold the top batting spot in three years. However, competition remains fierce, with India’s Smriti Mandhana (743 points) and South Africa’s Laura Wolvaardt (735 points) also in close contention.
In the all-rounder rankings, Matthews holds a comfortable lead with 524 points, well ahead of Australia’s Ash Gardner (415 points), India’s Deepti Sharma (396 points), New Zealand’s Amelia Kerr (387 points), and Sri Lanka’s Chamari Athapaththu (330 points).
With the spotlight on her, Matthews will look to inspire the West Indies with both bat and ball as she pursues T20 dominance.
