Australia booked their place in the ICC Women's T20 World Cup 2026 final with an eight-wicket win over the West Indies in the first semi-final at The Oval on Tuesday. The six-time champions returned to the final after three years, after missing out in 2024, and kept their unbeaten run in the tournament.
Australia restricted the West Indies to 125/7, then chased the target in 13 overs to finish on 127/2. Beth Mooney led the reply with an unbeaten 61 off 36 balls, while Ash Gardner made 35 not out. They will meet the winner of the second semi-final between England and South Africa in Sunday's final.
West Indies start, then lose control
Before the match, West Indies faced an injury scare when Deandra Dottin was carried off by her team-mates. Head coach Shane Deitz said it was due to
a "medical issue". Even so, Dottin later came out to bat and made a useful late score under pressure.
Asked to bat, West Indies began well as Hayley Matthews drove through the covers for four. She and Qiana Joseph put on 47 for the first wicket, but Australia kept the scoring low in the powerplay and limited the pair to 35/0 after six overs.
Matthews top-scored with 30, but her dismissal by Georgia Wareham on the first ball of the innings changed the flow. West Indies fell from 47/1 to 59/4, then Ash Gardner struck twice in the 11th over to remove Stafanie Taylor and Jahzara Claxton.
Australia finished with ease
West Indies slipped to 83/6 before Dottin fought back with 26 off 16 balls. She hit four fours and helped add 17 runs in the last two overs. Gardner led Australia's bowling with 2/13, while Wareham and Sophie Molineux also took two wickets each.
Australia stayed in control during the chase despite losing Georgia Voll and Phoebe Litchfield. Mooney anchored the innings with eight fours, and after Ellyse Perry retired hurt as a precaution, Gardner finished the game with a six and four fours in her brisk unbeaten 35.
