Mooney, King guide Australia to easy win

Beth Mooney's 55-ball 79 and Alana King's three-wicket haul helped Australia overcome a sloppy day in the field to beat hosts West Indies by 43 runs in the first T20I in St. Vincent.

Sophie Molineux chose to bat first, but Australia stumbled early to 34/2. Mooney and Ellyse Perry (36) then steadied the innings with a 99-run partnership that gathered pace after a cautious start. The pair added 84 runs across seven overs after the halfway mark, with Mooney bringing up her half-century off 42 balls.

Deandra Dottin broke the stand, dismissing Perry in the 17th over. Mooney followed soon after, but Australia had already set a strong total of 164/6.

West Indies reached 33/0 at the end of the Powerplay. King soon made amends for a missed caught-and-bowled chance by bowling captain Hayley Matthews after the Powerplay.

Qiana Joseph's 39-ball 45 kept the innings moving, as West Indies got to 69/1 at the halfway mark. Shemaine Campbelle (15) got three reprieves as Australia put down chances.

The 43-run stand for the second wicket ended when Joseph was caught in the deep. King then trapped Campbelle lbw for 15, leaving West Indies at 76/3 when rain briefly halted play in the 13th over. On resumption, King struck immediately to account for Dottin and put Australia on track to a comfortable win.

West Indies finished on 121/6.

Brief Scores: Australia 164/6 in 20 overs (Beth Mooney 79; Deandra Dottin 3-35) beat West Indies 121/6 (Qiana Joseph 45; Alana King 3-14) by 43 runs.