Stafanie Taylor stars again as WI complete cleansweep

West Indies Women completed a 3-0 ODI sweep of Ireland, winning the final ODI in Bready by 64 runs despite arguably their weakest batting performance of the tour.

Stafanie Taylor entered elite company with her 10th ODI century, and her second in two matches, but West Indies were shaky on either side of her 105, as no other batter in the top seven crossed 30. Ireland conceded 31 extras, including an eye-popping 27 wides. But Taylor's run out off the very last ball ensured Ireland claimed all ten West Indies wickets for the first time in a Women's ODI since 2003.

Eventually though, West Indies' 257 was enough for a comfortable win.

Ireland had suffered scathing defeats in the first two ODIs: a nine-wicket loss defending 269, and then a six-wicket loss in another hot West Indies chase (including twin tons from Taylor and Hayley Matthews). They got Matthews cheaply this time and had them on the mat at 82/5. But Taylor was stubborn and defiant, sourcing help from No.7 and No.8, and carrying them past 250.

It meant Ireland would have had to complete their third-highest ODI chase ever. Despite showing promise in parts, they fell well short.

That West Indies were down to 48/4 was largely down to Orla Prendergast's tidy opening spell. She gave 18 from her first five overs, accounting for Matthews with an away swinger, and conceded just one further boundary, also picking Ashmini Munisar later. Giving her able company were the Maguire sisters; together they kept chipping away at batters around Taylor, who herself was the third run-out of the innings.

Taylor couldn't take the field at the start of the second innings due to muscle cramps, but her controlled assault that preceded it laid the base for West Indies' total. She hit ten fours, primarily targeting the region down the ground and through covers. Her tenth century now draws her level with Nat Sciver-Brunt, with only six others, including Matthews (12), having hit more. It wasn't her only major milestone of the day: she also ticked past 10,000 international runs.

Ireland's response was heavily banking on No.3 Amy Hunter, who came into the game with scores of 96 and 67 from the first two games. But it was skipper Gaby Lewis who stepped on the pedal to start with, including sweetly timed back-to-back sixes, both pulled to cow corner and one off a free-hit. Those remained the only sixes in either innings, as West Indies stalled the chase as soon as Lewis got out.

From 86/2, they kept regularly losing wickets, with only No.7 Leah Paul crossing 30. Her partnership with Louise Little provided a semblance of resistance, but it only helped them get close to 200. The spin duo of Karishma Ramharack and Afy Fletcher shared six wickets and identical figures, with the latter overtaking Matthews for most wickets this series (8).

It's now the third time West Indies have defeated Ireland in a bilateral ODI series, bringing an end to their run of series losses in the format. Since January 2025, they had lost to England, South Africa, Sri Lanka and Australia.

Brief scores: West Indies Women 257/10 in 50 overs (Stafanie Taylor 105, Aaliyah Alleyne 33; Orla Prendergast 2-37, Jane Maguire 2-44) beat Ireland Women 193/10 in 43.1 overs (Gaby Lewis 50, Leah Paul 32; Karishma Ramharack 3-33, Afy Fletcher 3-33) by 64 runs.