Sammy told us that we would win: Taylor

West Indies women captain Stafanie Taylor said it was a dream come true after her side beat Australia by eight wickets to win the T20 World Cup for the first time in a pulsating final at the Eden Gardens here on Sunday evening.

West Indies’ openers Taylor and Hayley Matthews put on 120 for the first wicket and demolished the Southern Stars’ bowling attack to emerge victorious. “We are certainly on top of the world.  We have been waiting for this for a long time and it has come at the right time. We did not get the start we wanted with the ball, but the batting did it for us,” Taylor said. 

The skipper said it was important to believe in themselves in an important match. “I had told the girls we needed to back ourselves against a top side like Australia and we did exactly that today,” she added.

 The closing stage of the match was watched by the West Indies men’s team who were playing against England later in the evening. “It was fantastic to see the men's team supporting us at the ground,” said Taylor. “In fact, Darren Sammy (the men’s captain) had sent me a text message this morning saying we were going to win. I am happy we proved him right.”

 Australian captain Meg Lanning was understandably disappointed but conceded that the West Indies deserved to win. “We did not get the result we wanted, but full credit to the West Indies for the way they came out with the bat,” she said.

 “I felt we were a few runs short because 160 would have been nice. But we could have defended 148 if we bowled well. That was not to be. But I am proud of the effort everyone put in to get us here,” Lanning added.

 Matthews, who was adjudged the player of the match, was delighted. “Words can’t explain what I feel now. To be able to take the trophy home is a great feeling,” she added.

 Later, Taylor was today named as the women’s player of the tournament. Taylor was the unanimous choice of a select group of former cricket stars and highly respected commentators following her stellar performance in the tournament.

The 24-year-old all-rounder scored more than any other batter (246), while with the white ball she finished as the second most successful bowler behind Leigh Kasperek, Sophie Devine and Deandra Dottin (nine wickets apiece) with eight scalps.

Taylor is the fifth player to be named as the World Twenty20 women’s player of the tournament after England’s Claire Taylor (2009), Nicola Browne of New Zealand (2010) and England’s duo of Charlotte Edwards (2012) and Anya Shrubsole (2014).