London, June 29 (IANS) West Indies captain Hayley Matthews believes her side still has another level to reach as they prepare to face World No. 1 Australia in the semifinals of the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2026, insisting the Caribbean side will need their biggest stars to deliver if they are to upset the tournament favourites.

Australia head into Tuesday’s match at The Oval in strong form, having won all four of their group-stage games. They finished the group with a record run chase in the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup against India at Lord’s.

West Indies took a much more dramatic path to reach the semifinals. They started the tournament with three straight wins, but then lost to England and Ireland. This left their future uncertain until England’s win over New Zealand secured their place in the semi-finals.

Matthews has scored 115 runs in five innings so far. She acknowledged that she has not yet played her best cricket but believes the Windies still have a lot of potential.

“We need big performances from our top players. A standout individual effort will be important,” she said. “However, to beat a team like Australia, we need more than one player stepping up. Our best players need to rise to the occasion tomorrow.

“I feel like players like Aliyah Alleyne and Jahzara Claxton have been excellent role players throughout the tournament. With our stars alongside them stepping up, we’ll need a complete team performance.

“We haven’t played our best match yet. Neither I nor Deandra Dottin nor I have scored enough runs, which gives us plenty of room to improve as a team. Hopefully, some of us can step up more and challenge the Aussies.”

Matthews has had memorable success against Australia in the past. Three years ago, she scored 132 runs off just 64 balls, helping the West Indies achieve the highest successful chase in women’s T20 international history by chasing down 213 runs with one ball left. Earlier in that series, she also scored an unbeaten 99, and in Kolkata a decade ago, her 45-ball 66 helped the West Indies win the Women’s T20 World Cup.

Australia’s Ellyse Perry, one of the few players still around from the side that lost that 2016 final, chose not to focus on the past, despite entering the semi-final on the back of two consecutive half-centuries.

“We don’t want to think about past losses. That was 10 years ago. The game has changed a lot since then. You can’t even relate things to our last match because sports can be unpredictable,” she said.

“We’ve played against each other quite a lot in the past couple of months. Earlier this year, we toured the West Indies and had a warm-up match, so we know each other fairly well right now.

“They have tremendously talented and dangerous players with a lot of experience. This will be a great challenge for us. The quick turnaround and the change of venue make it even more interesting. We’re really looking forward to it.”

Australia’s Ash Gardner also recognised the challenge posed by Matthews and Deandra Dottin. They previously played together at the Gujarat Giants.

“The West Indies present a different threat. They have a lot of talent and power within their team. They also have plenty of experience, led expertly by Hayley Matthews, who can change a game quickly. Then you have Deandra Dottin, who is a threat in every aspect of the game.

“She’s an excellent player, and I’ve had the chance to play alongside her. I admire her fearless approach to cricket, which can be intimidating because she can turn a game around in an instant.

“They definitely offer a unique challenge. Fortunately, we just played a series against them. We can prepare quickly for this new venue, which is great for batting.

“We need to do our homework fast since we only have one day before the match. Then we can get excited about the occasion.”

–IANS

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