Hayley Matthews has taken over as captain of the West Indies women’s side from Stafanie Taylor, who was at the helm for seven years. According to a Cricket West Indies (CWI) release, Matthews will assume the role ahead of the team’s next series which is “expected to be played later this year”.
Taylor was named captain in 2015 and made her mark straightaway, most notably leading her side to the 2016 T20 World Cup title, as well as the semi-final of the ODI World Cup in New Zealand earlier this year. She has scored 5298 runs in 145 ODIs and 3121 runs in 111 T20Is, in addition to taking 152 wickets and 98 in the formats respectively. Taylor captained West Indies to 25 wins in 62 ODIs and 33 wins in 55 T20Is.
Matthews, 24, made her debut for West Indies in 2014, and played a leading role in her side’s 2016 T20 World Cup triumph. She was named the Player of the Match in the final against Australia where she made a 45-ball 66. She was appointed vice-captain ahead of the T20 World Cup in 2018. She has 1764 runs and 78 wickets in 69 ODIs, and 1055 runs and 58 wickets in 61 T20Is.
The recommendation by the women’s selection panel to make Matthews the captain was ratified at the CWI board of directors meeting on June 24.
