West Indies Women’s Rising Stars head coach, Steve Liburd, says he is comfortable with his side’s preparation ahead of next weekend’s start of the inaugural ICC Under-19 Women’s T20 World Cup.
The Caribbean side chased down a paltry 72 at Tuks Oval to beat Zimbabwe Women by six wickets in their second warm-up match on Wednesday, making up for Monday’s nine-wicket defeat to England Women.
Naijanni Cumberbatch top-scored with 22 from 21 balls with three fours while opener Shunelle Sawh chipped in with 19 to lay the foundation for the successful chase.
Right-arm seamer Jahzara Claxton had earlier claimed two for four from two overs to help limit Zimbabwe Women to 71 for eight from their 20 overs.
“We definitely wanted to assess our game plans, so the focus was on how we wanted to play going into the World Cup,” Liburd said.
“The bowlers did a tremendous job in executing their skills and putting the balls into the areas we discussed.”
He continued: “From a batting perspective, Naijanni continues to show that she understands her role in this team. Sawh and (Djenaba) Joseph supported well for a comprehensive team performance.
“With a few more days of training ahead of our first match, I am pleased with the players’ response.”
West Indies Rising Stars are preparing for their opening Group C game of the tournament against Ireland Women on Sunday at JB Marks Oval in Potchefstroom.
They will follow up with matches against Indonesia on Tuesday at NW University and against New Zealand at JB Marks Oval on Thursday – both matches also in Potchefstroom.
West Indies Rising Stars’ preparation got off to a rocky start when they scraped 65 for eight against England Women at Hammanskraal Mandela Oval in Pretoria.
Right-hander Cumberbatch was again the top-scorer with 25 from 33 deliveries with four fours.
-CMC
