Brits slams career-best 98* as West Indies go down in first T20I

Tazmin Brits slammed a career-best 98 not out, off just 63 balls, to lead South Africa to a 50-run win in the opening T20I against West Indies in Cave Hill on Friday. There was little resistance from West Indies with either the ball or the bat, though two individual efforts stood out: Jahzara Claxton's three top-order wickets and Jannillea Glasgow's 53 not out from 44 balls in the second half of the chase, but it was far too little.

Asked to bat, South Africa lost captain Laura Wolvaardt and Marizanne Kapp to Claxton inside five overs, and finished the powerplay on 44 for 2, but Brits and Nadine de Klerk were already starting to go fast. The two brought up a 71-run stand for the third wicket in just over six overs, Brits very much the aggressor, scoring 42 of the runs in that partnership.

De Klerk fell in the 11th over for 21, Claxton again the bowler with the wicket, and though there was no major contribution from the rest of the batters bar Chloe Tryon's 16 in nine balls before she was run out, Brits batted through the innings, hitting nine fours and four sixes.

Faced with a target of 184, West Indies started quickly, but lost wickets quickly too. They got 47 in the powerplay, more than South Africa had, but they lost an additional wicket, including the big one of captain Hayley Matthews. And by the end of the eighth over, they were five down and gasping.

The fight came from Chinelle Henry and Glasgow in their 81-run stand for the sixth wicket, but West Indies had fallen too far behind for the partnership to have an effect on the outcome. In any case, Henry and Glasgow couldn't quite get going, even though they batted together for 11-and-a-half overs. Henry's 26 took 32 balls, and Glasgow went at a rate of 120.45, remaining unbeaten at the close, having hit five fours in her innings.