Crandon confident of improved collective batting performance from West Indies Women in England

By Brandon Corlette

The West Indies Women are on the brink of a series defeat, having lost the first two matches in the five-match T20 series against England. In the third match, which is slated to bowl off from 8:00h today (Saturday, September 26), the West Indies Women will be aiming to turn things around. On the eve of that match, Assistant Coach Esuan Crandon has said the Caribbean women will be looking to produce an improved and collective batting effort.

Deandra Dottin has played a ‘lone hand’ in the first two matches. Across both teams, she is the only woman who has scored more than 100 runs in this series so far.

Crandon has said the batters have not performed as expected, but, as a team, an improved collective batting performance from other batters would do justice for the likes of Stafanie Taylor, Deandra Dottin and Hayley Matthews (the top three).
“It is a matter for these girls to take responsibility. It has not happened as yet, but we are confident that other batters will support from the next game onwards,” Crandon has said.
The West Indies Women have twice played an unchanged team in as many matches. When quizzed about any possible changes to the starting XI, Crandon said it was up to the selectors, the Head Coach and the captain.
In terms of the trend of winning the toss and opting to chase, Crandon believes these decisions are made based on the conditions.
“At the end of the day, we had our plans why we asked them (England) to bat first, but it did not work out for us; so, we always have plans and reasons behind these decisions,” he has offered.

Dottin, a star all-rounder, has shown her skill with the bat in this series, but is yet to bowl. On the eve of the match, she was seen bowling in the nets, and Assistant Coach Crandon has explained that the star all-rounder is being carefully managed, since she is still recuperating.
“We don’t feel we need to rush her back into bowling, but we will do so at the appropriate time,” Crandon explained.
The batting has been the biggest letdown thus far in this series, but Crandon has voiced his belief that rotation of the strike has, to some extent, shown a glimpse of competitiveness from the West Indies Women.
This successful Guyanese Coach has said the West Indies Women were outplayed by the number of boundaries their opponents hit, and that has made a difference in terms of team totals scored.
After two defeats, some changes are anticipated in the West Indies starting XI, with Guyanese Shabika Gajnabi, Sheneta Grimmond, Cherry-Ann Fraser and Kaysia Schultz being eager to showcase their skills at some point in this series. In terms of readiness, Crandon has said that management is keeping each and every player sharp. He noted that all the players in the squad are prepared to grab the opportunity to play whenever it arises.
West Indies Women’s full squad reads: Stafanie Taylor, Deandra Dottin, Shemaine Campbelle, Afy Fletcher, Hayley Matthews, Shamilia Connell, Britney Cooper, Chedean Nation, Natasha McLean, Chinelle Henry, Aaliyah Alleyne, Lee-Ann Kirby, Sheneta Grimmond, Karishma Ramharack, Shabika Gajnabi, Cherry-Ann Fraser, Kaysia Schultz.