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3rd over: England 17-1 (Dunkley 3, Sciver-Brunt 11) Sciver-Brunt pumps James emphatically over mid-on for four. It’s a safe shot against James because, although she is technically a left-arm spinner, every delivery is coming into the right-hander.
2nd over: England 10-1 (Dunkley 2, Sciver-Brunt 6) Cherry-Ann Fraser shares the new ball. Her pace is good, just shy of 70mph, and Sciver-Brunt misses a premediated ramp off the final ball of the over. England could take their time with such a small target but they are determined to dominate.
1st over: England 6-1 (Dunkley 1, Sciver-Brunt 5) Nat Sciver-Brunt, who got a two-ball duck at Canterbury, clips her first ball stylishly past midwicket for four.
WICKET! England 0-1 (Wyatt-Hodge b James 0)
Well, well: Danni Wyatt-Hodge has gone for a golden duck! She drove outside the line of a curving delivery from the left-arm spinner Zaina James that went through the gate to hit the stumps. Nicely bowled, bit of a loose shot.
England need 82 to win
20th over: West Indies 81-9 (Fraser 4, Ramharack 5) Issy Wong completes a ruthless performance in the field from England. Em Arlott, playing only her second game for England, set the tone with a three-wicket burst – including Hayley Matthews – in the Powerplay.
Lauren Bell also took three wickets, Charlie Dean snared two in two balls and Issy Wong couldn’t stop smiling during a confident spell of 4-0-10-1.
19th over: West Indies 79-9 (Fraser 4, Ramharack 3) No wickets tonight for Linsey Smith but she was parsimonious as ever: 4-0-15-0. That’s the eighth time in 18 T20Is that she’s gone at less than a run a ball.
18th over: West Indies 76-9 (Fraser 3, Ramharack 1) Bell almost finishes the innings with a couple of excellent yorkers that whoosh past Fraser’s off stump.
WICKET! West Indies 75-9 (Fletcher c Sciver-Brunt b Bell 2)
Nine down, one to go. Fletcher drives Bell high in the air and Sciver-Brunt backpedals from extra cover to take a comfortable catch.
17th over: West Indies 75-8 (Fraser 3, Fletcher 2) It feels like West Indies are miles short of a par score, maybe even 80 or 90 runs.
WICKET! West Indies 72-8 (Gajnabi c Dunkley b Wong 22)
Issy Wong gets her first wicket of the night with a lovely bit of bowling. Gajnabi, completely hoodwinked by a loopy slower ball, sliced a big shot towards backward point and was well caught by Dunkley.
16th over: West Indies 72-7 (Gajnabi 22, Fraser 2) Fraser swipes Dean over wide mid-on for a couple to get off the mark, then almost offers a return catch with a blast down the ground. It bounces just short of Dean who fields well. She ends with fine figures of 4-0-12-2.
15th over: West Indies 69-7 (Gajnabi 21, Fraser 0)
WICKET! West Indies 69-7 (Alleyne c Jones b Bell 0)
Bell starts a new spell with a high full toss, which means a no-ball and a free hit. Gajnabi takes advantage to drive high over mid-off for four; that’s the first boundary in six overs.
And there’s the third wicket in five balls! Aaliyah Alleyne has also gone for a golden duck, fiddling a back-of-a-length delivery through to Amy Jones.
14th over: West Indies 61-6 (Gajnabi 16, Alleyne 0) That was the last ball of the over so Dean will be on a hat-trick at the start of her next over.
WICKET! West Indies 61-6 (Mangru b Dean 0)
Charlie Dean is on a hat-trick! Mandy Mangru misses an ill-judged sweep and is bowled for a golden duck.
WICKET! West Indies 63-5 (Campbelle c Arlott b Dean 25)
Yep, that was coming. Shemaine Campbelle was getting visibly frustrated by her inability to pierce the infield with ground shots, so she decided to go aerial and holed out to Em Arlott at long on. She took a calm catch to give Charlie Dean her first wicket.
13th over: West Indies 61-4 (Campbelle 25, Gajnabi 15) Gajnabi tries to make something happen with a premeditated reverse-sweep on Smith, but she only glove the ball slowly towards short third. England’s bowlers have given West Indies very little to work with.
12th over: West Indies 58-4 (Campbelle 23, Gajnabi 14) A fine second over from Wong includes a wider short ball that beats Campbelle’s attempted cut. It’s been 23 balls since West Indies’ last boundary and it feels like something is about to give.
11th over: West Indies 55-4 (Campbelle 22, Gajnabi 13) A lovely, flighted delivery from Dean is dragged in the air but safely over midwicket by Gajnabi. That brings one of only four singles from another pretty good over. England have the game under control.
Drinks: England on top after fast start
10th over: West Indies 51-4 (Campbelle 20, Gajnabi 11) Time for the raw pace of Issy Wong. It’s so good to see her back in the team, and with a big smile on her face as she celebrates a crowd catch.
Wong, like all the England bowlers tonight, hits a line and length from the start – full and straight in her case. Three from the over, and that’s drinks.
9th over: West Indies 48-4 (Campbelle 19, Gajnabi 9) A fraction of width from Smith is enough for Campbelle to larrup a boundary through the covers. There’s a precautionary run-out check later in the over but Gajnabi was home.
8th over: West Indies 40-4 (Campbelle 13, Gajnabi 7) Nat Sciver-Brunt decides to bowl Arlott straight through. Gajnabi, on the run, flat-bats an emphatic boundary through the covers; Arlott responds with a 68mph bouncer that is called wide on height.
After a quiet end to the over, Arlott finishes with marvellous figures of 4-1-14-3. Well bowled indeed.
Anyone out there? Anyone? Fry?
7th over: West Indies 33-4 (Campbelle 12, Gajnabi 2) Charlie Dean comes on after the Powerplay. Her first over is a quiet one, just three singles from it. West Indies may have to take two of three overs to stabilise the innings.
It’s deceptively sunny at Hove. Plenty of the crowd, not to mention Charlotte Edwards, are shivering under their coats as they watch the action.
6th over: West Indies 30-4 (Campbelle 11, Gajnabi 0) England needed many things after that desperate Ashes defeat. Top of the list was new blood – not just to energise the team but to give hope to everybody in domestic cricket. Arlott earned her call-up with her performances in the One-Day Cup and she’s making the most of her chance. She has figures of 3-1-7-3: brilliant at the best of times, quite outstanding in the Powerplay.
WICKET! West Indies 29-4 (Taylor c Dean b Arlott 0)
Em Arlott is having a night out. She has just taken her third wicket, with the dangerous Stafanie Taylor clattering a drive straight to Charlie Dean in the covers. West Indies are in abundant bother.
5th over: West Indies 29-3 (Campbelle 11, Taylor 0) Three down or not, West Indies will keep coming in the Powerplay. Campbelle slashes Bell deliberately over the cordon for four before nailing a lofted drive over mid-off. Lovely shot.
4th over: West Indies 18-3 (Campbelle 1, Taylor 0) That was the last ball of the over, a memorable one for Em Arlott in only her second game for England. She has figures of 2-0-7-2.
WICKET! West Indies 18-3 (James c Dunkley b Arlott 6)
Em Arlott has two wickets in the over and Sophia Dunkley has taken a blinder! James scuffed Arlott towards midwicket, where Dunkley threw up her left hand to take a brilliant reaction catch. There has been lots of focus on England’s fielding after the Ashes defeat; catches like that will change the narrative very quickly.
WICKET! West Indies 16-2 (Matthews b Arlott 6)
A huge wicket for Em Arlott! Hayley Matthews wafts all around an excellent delivery that nips back to hit leg stump. Matthews had driven the previous ball majestically over extra-cover for four but Arlott kept pitching it up and got her reward.
3rd over: West Indies 12-1 (Matthews 2, James 6) The left-arm spinner Linsey Smith replaces Lauren Bell. She’s straight into her work, troubling James with her accuracy and drift, and again there’s only one run from the over.
2nd over: West Indies 11-1 (Matthews 1, James 6) Charlie Dean took the new ball on Wednesday; tonight it’s Em Arlott. She starts with an impressively tight line to Hayley Matthews, who gets off the mark by cuffing her fifth ball to deep point for a single. That’s the only run from a pretty good over.
1st over: West Indies 10-1 (Matthews 0, James 6) Zaida James slashes her second ball through backward point for four. An eventful first over: two boundaries, one wicket.
WICKET! West Indies 4-1 (Joseph ct and b Bell 4)
Short and sweet from Qiana Joseph. She pulled her second ball fiercely for four, then popped the third straight back to Lauren Bell. It was a good delivery that hit Joseph high on the bat, and Bell reacted smartly in her follow through to take the catch.
The players are ready to go. Lauren Bell has the ball, Qiana Joseph will take first strike.
Team news
England are unchanged. West Indies bring in Stafanie Taylor and Shemaine Campbelle for Realeanna Grimmond and Janillea Glasgow; that should lighten the batting load on Hayley Matthews.
England Wyatt-Hodge, Dunkley, Sciver-Brunt (c), Knight, Jones (wk), Capsey, Arlott, Wong, Dean, Smith, Bell.
West Indies Joseph, Matthews (c), James, Campbelle, Taylor, Gajnabi, Alleyne, Mangru (wk), Fraser, Fletcher, Ramharack.
England win the toss and bowl
Nat Sciver-Brunt wins another toss and sticks with the tactic that worked so well in Canterbury on Wednesday.
Preamble
Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss Lotte’s first series win as England coach. Two days on from her first game in charge, Charlotte Edwards’ team will clinch the T20 series if they beat West Indies on a beautiful summer’s evening in Hove.
England were comfortable winners in Wednesday’s opening game despite the latest demonstration of Hayley Matthews’ genius. Her unbeaten 100 took West Indies to an adequate score of 146 for 7, but Sophia Dunkley (81*) and Heather Knight (43*) got the job done for England with eight wickets and 21 balls to spare.
Even a rare failure from the captain Nat Sciver-Brunt worked in England’s favour. She was out for a second-ball duck and didn’t bowl, yet they still had more than enough to beat a decent if understrength West Indies. They’ll hope to do the same tonight; if not, the first series decider of the Edwards era will take place at Chelmsford on Monday.
The match starts at 6.35pm.
