England v West Indies: Hosts take unassailable 2-0 lead with Worcester win

By Callum MatthewsBBC Sport
Second women's one-day international, Blackfinch New Road, Worcester:
England 233-7 (41 overs): Beaumont 61, Sciver 35, Fletcher 3-48
West Indies 87-6 (28 overs): Campbelle 29, Cross 2-4, Shrubsole 2-12
England win by 121 runs (DLS method), lead series 2-0
Scorecard

England opened an unassailable 2-0 lead over West Indies with a 121-run victory in a rain-affected second match of their one-day international series.

Tammy Beaumont (61) and Nat Sciver (35) helped England post 233-7 in 41 overs, the hosts slipping from 110-1 to 179-6 before Anya Shrubsole's rapid 32.

Shrubsole and Kate Cross then took two wickets each as West Indies - with a revised target of 209 - made 87-6.

England will look to complete a whitewash at Chelmsford on Thursday.

Sunday's victory earned them two points in the International Cricket Council's Women's Championshipexternal-link and took them to the verge of qualification for the 2021 World Cup in New Zealand.

England's lower order shines

Anya Shrubsole
Shrubsole's 32 from 16 balls was her highest ODI score

England slipped from 258-3 to 287-7 in the first ODI on Thursday, and another five-wicket collapse three days later should cause further concern.

Both have come on perfectly reasonable batting pitches having won the toss, and the fragile nature of England's middle order will be a worry in the build-up to the Ashes, where it is more likely to be exposed.

Sciver, who at her destructive best is among the world's elite, has made 32 and 35 so far in the series and will be frustrated not to have capitalised on good starts.

Danni Wyatt, meanwhile, has been dismissed for two single-figure scores - but Katherine Brunt, Shrubsole and Sophie Ecclestone have batted well.

Brunt's run-a-ball 23 and Shrubsole's 32 off 16 balls gave the end of England's innings real impetus and took the game well out of the reach of West Indies.

Speaking on Test Match Special, former Middlesex captain Isabelle Westbury said: "It's super-encouraging to see Brunt, Shrubsole and Ecclestone - who are frontline bowlers - strike the ball as well as they are."

Windies improve but still fall well short

Stafanie Taylor
West Indies captain Stafanie Taylor took 1-39 from eight overs

West Indies captain Stafanie Taylor called her side's fielding on Thursday "atrocious". Three days later there were huge improvements - the tourists flinging themselves around at will - even in lost causes.

That helped them restrict the home side to 27-0 after seven overs - they had been 55-0 at that stage of the opening match.

But, having frustrated openers Beaumont and Amy Jones, their death bowling was disappointing, with England adding 48 in the final four overs as the experimental use of off-spinner Hayley Matthews did not pay off.

Taylor and wicketkeeper Kycia Knight then fell to soft dismissals, and the Windies went 44 balls without hitting a boundary at one stage despite their big target.

So, while improvements were noticeable, there was still an obvious gulf in class, particularly in terms of application and intent with the bat - showing little or no desire to chase the readjusted target of 209 from 28 overs on the Duckworth-Lewis-Stern method after the rain abated.

'We were saved by the lower order' - what they said

England captain Heather Knight: "We lost a few wickets after the rain delay but we bat all the way down and it was great to see Anya Shrubsole biffing it, while young Sophie Ecclestone has a habit of hitting sixes.

"We were saved a bit by the lower order - Anya was outstanding with the ball."

West Indies captain Stafanie Taylor: "I'm very pleased to see how the bowlers bowled. It was good to revisit the videos that we had and for us to come out and bowl the way that we did."

On the batting tactics after the rain delay: "We lost quick wickets and we have another game to play. It was important to see what the bowlers were bowling and get some practice in before the final ODI."

England seamer Anya Shrubsole: "I was disappointed with the last game from a personal point of view, so it was nice to smash a few and get some wickets. My batting's something I've worked very hard on, I've probably frustrated a few coaches down the years but coming in and having a swing is always fun."

On what England could improve on: "In both games we've probably needed a set batter to go through the innings, but we've put in two good performances."

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