🏏ICC Women's T20 World Cup 2026: SF-1: Australia W vs West Indies W🏏

🏏ICC Women's T20 World Cup 2026: SF-1: Australia W vs West Indies W🏏

Unstoppable Australia overwhelming favourites against hit-and-miss WI

In nine World Cups, Australia have qualified for the final seven times

Two days after ousting India and ending the group stage of the 2026 Women's T20 World Cup undefeated, Australia have West Indies in their sights in the first semi-final as they chase an eighth T20 World Cup final. The magnitude of what West Indies are up against can be gauged by Australia's eye-popping record at T20 World Cups.

Australia have been nigh unstoppable so far this World Cup. They began with a 65-run hammering of South Africa, followed by a nine-wicket win against Bangladesh, a 98-run win against Netherlands and a 113-run mowing down of Pakistan. While they were pushed by India, the old warhorses Ellyse Perry and Ash Gardner were up to the task as Australia ended the group stages undefeated and boasting a NRR of +3.882. Australia don't have a single player in the top three run-getters or wicket-takers list, and that just proves how they have had contributions from different players.

This is a far contrast to how West Indies have managed the group stage. They started the tournament with a nervy win against New Zealand but were pushed to the brink by Scotland. They then registered a fairly comfortable win against Sri Lanka, but defeats against England and Ireland almost derailed their campaign. They were handed a lifeline with England's win over New Zealand, which helped them scrape into their sixth T20 World Cup semi-final.

West Indies don't have a great record against Australia: two wins and 17 losses in 19 T20Is. In T20 World Cups, they've registered just one win in six games, but that win was probably the biggest of their careers, coming at the 2016 final. Five of the 11 players who were part of that winning West Indies side are still around and likely to be part of the XI on Tuesday. Can they inspire West Indies to do the unthinkable, or will Australia continue their bullish run?

When: Tuesday, June 30, 2026, 2:30 PM Local Time/7:00 PM IST

Where: Australia vs West Indies, Semi final 1, The Oval, London

What to expect: With 62-meter boundaries on all sides, there are no specific areas to target, but The Oval has been one of the highest scoring venues in The Hundred - especially last season when the scoring rate shot up significantly. The team winning the toss is likely to chase.

Team News:

West Indies: Chenille Henry didn't bowl in the nets, but Hayley Matthews confirmed that was only as part of precaution, and the all-rounder should be available for the match.

Probable XI: Qiana Joseph, Hayley Matthews (c), Shemaine Campbelle (wk), Stafanie Taylor, Deandra Dottin, Chinelle Henry, Jahzara Claxton, Jannilea Glasgow, Aaliyah Alleyne, Afy Fletcher, Ashmini Munisar

Australia: There may not be a need to alter the Playing XI, but given the help that spinners have found on the surface this year, Australia would be tempted to bring in Alana King.

Probable XI: Beth Mooney (wk), Georgia Voll, Phoebe Litchfield, Ellyse Perry, Ash Gardner, Georgia Wareham, Annabel Sutherland, Nicola Carey, Sophie Molineux (c), Kim Garth, Alana King

Did you know?

• All five Women's T20 matches played at The Oval this year have been won by the teams chasing
• Ellyse Perry needs 20 runs to become the fourth Australian to score 2500 runs in T20Is
• Stafanie Taylor needs two wickets to become the fourth West Indian to take 100 T20I wickets

What they said:

"Coming up against Australia, we have nothing to lose, and that puts us in a position where we can be quite fearless going out there" - Hayley Matthews, West Indies captain

"They've got a lot of class and a lot of firepower within their team. Also a lot of experience...you look at someone like Deandra Dottin, she's a threat in all three phases of the game. She's a fantastic player. I've had the privilege of playing with her, and just seeing how she goes about her cricket, she's so fearless in the way that she approaches it, which sometimes can be quite scary because she can flick a switch pretty quickly...they've got that rawness within their side. They definitely pose a different threat." - Ash Gardner, Australia vice-captain

Pitch and conditions

The Oval has hosted just one match so far this World Cup, where England chased down New Zealand's 164 fairly comfortably. The Oval is traditionally a chasing ground, and the team winning the toss might want to chase. The temperatures in London are expected to be in the mid to late 20-degree range on the Celcius scale.

Thank you Raji, for the thread and for tagging.

May the best team win this match.

Thanks for the tag

WI Let's go!

13:30 Local Time, 12:30 GMT, 18:00 IST: Australia's march to the semifinals has been nothing short of dominant. Five wins from five games, without ever looking troubled, underlines why they enter as overwhelming favourites. Even when India stretched them in their final league match, Australia calmly chased down their highest-ever target in Women's T20 World Cup history, sealing a seven-wicket win with an over to spare. Having fallen short of the final in the last two ICC events, they'll be determined to go all the way. West Indies, meanwhile, announced themselves with a stunning win over defending champions New Zealand and followed it up with victories over Scotland and Sri Lanka. However, consecutive defeats to end the league stage mean they'll need to rediscover their best at just the right time if they're to upset the tournament favourites. Hello and welcome to the first semifinal of the Women's T20 World Cup.

West Indies, though, have shown they are capable of beating anyone on their day, as they proved with their opening win over New Zealand. There is a healthy blend of youth and experience in the squad. Hayley Matthews has led the way with the ball but is still waiting for a defining innings with the bat. Could today be that day? Shemaine Campbelle and Stafanie Taylor have chipped in with important performances, but they'll need others to elevate their game as well. The bowling has largely revolved around Matthews and Aaliyah Alleyne, while Chinelle Henry, who missed the opening game through injury, has returned without quite hitting top gear. West Indies will need to be at their absolute best in all three departments if they are to pull off an upset. On paper, this may look one-sided, but World Cups and knockout games bring a different kind of pressure. Let's see who handles the occasion better. Toss and teams coming up..