The England’s women cricket team on Wednesday sealed their spot in the semi-final of the 2026 T20 World Cup, defeating West Indies by a margin of 38 runs. However, their victory was marred by a controversy after West Indies captain Hayley Matthews was given out by the third umpire despite visual evidence suggesting that there was a clear gap between the ball and the bat.
The incident happened in the fourth over of the West Indies innings when England appealed that Matthews had nicked a ball to wicketkeeper Amy Jones, while playing the cut shot off Linsey Smith’s ball. The ball was a quicker delivery that Smith bowled outside the off stump, but it appeared that Matthews had nicked it. The original decision by on-field umpire N Janani was not out, but England went for a review.
The third umpire, Nimali Perera, watched several replays on the UltraEdge and reversed the decision to out, suggesting that Matthews had nicked the ball. The decision left Matthews frustrated, and she was seen expressing her disappointment about the third umpire’s decision.ย
Later, during the post-match conference, Matthews the sound was of her bat hitting the pad, adding that she was certain that the ball was away from her bat.
“When I cut at the ball, I heard something which I thought was probably my bat handle or something like that, and I immediately went to the on-field umpires and told them that I heard a noise,” the West Indies captain said. “I certainly felt like I was far away from the ball, and I let them know what the case was, but the third umpire obviously has a decision to make.”
“I felt like you could have seen a clear gap between bat and ball, but at the same time, [the TV umpire] has got to work with the technology that there is, and she saw a spike, and at the end of the day, I’m going to have to respect that,” she added.
In the end, England went on to win the game, which was played at the Lord’s, and sealed their spot in the semi-final of the 2026 T20 World Cup. Dani Wyatt-Hodge was adjudged the player of the game for her 42-ball 65-run innings.
Brief score:
England Women: 186/7(20)
West Indies Women: 148/5(20)
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