Beaumont and Jones tons set up crushing England win

Derby’s first ODI

England 345-6 (50 overs): Jones 122 (121), Beaumont 107 (104), Matthews 2-49

West Indies 237 (48.2 overs): Joseph 62 (74), Smith 5-36

108 runs led to England’s victory.

In the first one-day international at Derby, Tammy Beaumont and Amy Jones scored 108 runs to win the team.

Beaumont added 107 to her opening stand of 222, making her first international hundred since she was promoted to open for the first time since 2019.

Nat Sciver-Brunt’s quick 52 from 35 balls helped England to 345-6 in her first ODI since becoming permanent captain.

West Indies openers Hayley Matthews and Qiana Joseph responded with a score of 91 in 14 overs before debutante Em Arlott took Matthews’ prized wicket for 48.

England started cautiously in overcast conditions, winning 45-0 from the first 10 overs, after new coach Charlotte Edwards had called for them to be smarter in 50-over cricket since their Ashes drubbing at the beginning of the year.

Beaumont’s fifty came from 74 balls, before a sudden change in acceleration caused her to take just 22 balls to surpass Jones’ milestone century, which Cherry-Ann Fraser eventually bowled in the 36th over.

Emma Lamb was called back to the starting lineup after her impressive domestic debut as a Lancashire opener, but she was left with two games to go.

Jones shook as she approached three figures: Jahzara Claxton and Karishma Ramharack, respectively, dropped her on 91 and 92 and both put down in their follow-up, before bringing up a 108-ball ton in her 226th international debut.

When asked about her coaching philosophy and goals after being appointed in April, Edwards frequently made references to England’s 50-over cricket strategy, calling for a more detailed gameplan, and departing from Jon Lewis’ mantra of inspiring and entertaining.

England have a few days to prepare for the World Cup in this format, but for the first time ever, their batters have delivered.

With their innings leading to 121-0 after 25 overs, it could be argued that Jones and Beaumont could have been a little more aggressive in the first half of the innings because their attack was unthreatening and their fielding average was average.

The pair made sure they had wickets in hand before accelerating in the final 20 overs as a result of adapting to the slow bowling attack.

England started out with 55% attacking shots in the first 10 overs, before dropping to 45% in the next 10; after both openers had passed 50, that percentage increased to 77% between 21-30 overs.

Their opening partnership was England’s fifth-highest in women’s ODI history and their fifth-highest ever wicket taken against West Indies in the format, which provided the perfect foundation for Sciver-Brunt.

In the 36th over, Lamb entered the crease, but England passed 300 with ease thanks to captain Sciver-Brunt’s six fours and six from the wilting Windies bowlers.

Despite the positive changes in the batting department, England’s debut in the field was disappointing because their bowlers struggled to control and the sloppiness that had persisted for a while.

Joseph, a well-known face to England following her T20 World Cup heroics last year, batted with much more control than that infamous innings despite still racking up nine fours with her customary leg-side dominance. Matthews, on the other hand, stayed in top form throughout the T20 series before falling behind Arlott at the beginning of the 15th over.

West Indies resisted, but the run-rate completely stalled: between 20-30, they scored only 2. 8 runs per over. From there, England’s victory seemed inevitable.

Sophia Dunkley dropped Zaida James on the spot, but she was unable to capitalize on her chance as Smith’s first breakthrough was pinned her for seven, before Shemaine Campbelle and Mandy Mangru were bowled by stunning floating deliveries that resisted their defenses.

As Smith became only the second England player to record a five-wicket haul on their first ODI debut, Fraser and Jahzara Claxton both were caught by Dunkley on the boundary.

Aaliyah Alleyne scored 44, helping West Indies to record their highest ODI total against England, which the hosts were frustrated by.

I’m most proud of how we settled in, making numerous adjustments, and making the big partnerships and hitting commitments we wanted to achieve.

Hayley Matthews, captain of the West Indies, said, “It was pretty difficult out there. The England openers had a great time and were very disciplined. They were set for a rather large total later on, but we didn’t discover a breakthrough until later.