Unbeaten England and West Indies eye semi-final berth
Clash between unbeaten England and West Indies
After hectic double-headers and triple-headers, the Women’s T20 World Cup 2026 only has one game in store for us on Wednesday, and it should be a mouthwatering contest. Hosts England are among the favourites to lift the title, and their performances so far have backed that tag. Their three wins so far have ranged from dominant to comfortable, and boast of a net run rate of 2.49. West Indies, meanwhile, beat the defending champions New Zealand and are also on three wins out of three. And they meet in the first game of this World Cup at Lord’s – the venue for the final – with both teams one win away from booking a semi-final berth.
Team news and likely XIs
England will still be without their regular captain and star allrounder Nat Sciver-Brunt, with Charlie Dean standing in to lead in her absence. Sciver-Brunt’s replacement Sophia Dunkley hit a half-century, and Freya Kemp and Dani Gibson showed off their finishing chops as they romped to 200 for 5 in a 38-run win over Scotland in the last match, and England will likely go with the same team against West Indies.
England XI (probable): 1 Amy Jones (wk), 2 Danni Wyatt-Hodge, 3 Sophia Dunkley, 4 Alice Capsey, 5 Heather Knight, 6 Freya Kemp, 7 Dani Gibson, 8 Charlie Dean (capt), 9 Sophie Ecclestone, 10 Linsey Smith, 11 Lauren Bell
West Indies will also likely stay unchanged from the team that beat Sri Lanka.
West Indies XI (probable): 1 Hayley Matthews (capt), 2 Deandra Dottin, 3 Shemaine Campbell (wk), 4 Stafanie Taylor, 5 Jahzara Claxton, 6 Chinelle Henry, 7 Jannillea Glasgow, 8 Aaliyah Alleyne, 9 Afy Fletcher, 10 Karishma Ramharack, 11 Ashmini Munisar
Players to watch
She is England’s strike bowler but Lauren Bell has just two wickets from three games and went wicketless for 35 runs against Scotland. But at Lord’s, where the pitch may have a bit more for fast bowlers, Bell could dictate proceedings in the powerplay with her ability to make the new ball talk.
For West Indies, it’s hard to look beyond their captain Hayley Matthews, who has seven wickets from three matches. She played two important innings – a 37-ball 48 to support Campbell in the chase against New Zealand and a run-a-ball 17 in the modest chase against Sri Lanka. However, against an explosive England side, she would need to improve her strike rate of 103.94 in this World Cup.
Pitch and conditions
This will be the first game of this competition at Lord’s, which will host three more games including the final – where both teams would want a return here. The last game held at Lord’s was the first England-New Zealand men’s Test, which ended in four days on June 7. The conditions could be more conducive for swing and seam.
