Hayley Matthews played the innings of her captaincy, striking a career-best 182 off 156 balls to set up a 99-run win for West Indies Women over Zimbabwe Women in the opening ODI of their landmark first-ever bilateral series at the Harare Sports Club on September 24.
Matthews's 182 is now the highest individual score by a West Indies woman in ODI cricket, going past Stafanie Taylor's 171 off 137 balls against Sri Lanka at the 2013 World Cup. It also stands as the sixth-highest individual score in the history of women's ODIs. Batting first, Matthews put on 128 runs for the opening wicket with Realeanna Grimmond, who made a supporting 53, before going on to anchor the innings deep into the 50 overs.
West Indies closed on 299 for 6 in their 50 overs, with Matthews eventually bowled off the first ball of the final over to bring the innings to a close, and Chinelle Henry (19) and Shemaine Campbelle (13) adding useful runs further down the order. In reply, Zimbabwe found a lone bright spot in Modester Mupachikwa's 86, but the rest of the batting order couldn't sustain the required rate against a disciplined West Indies attack led by Aaliyah Alleyne's 3 for 44, and the hosts were bowled out for 200 in 43.3 overs. Matthews was named Player of the Match for her innings.
As SportGod reported when the series began, this is the first time Zimbabwe and West Indies have ever met in a bilateral women's series, in any format. The three-match ODI leg forms part of the 2025-2029 ICC Women's Championship, with direct qualification for the next 50-over World Cup on the line for both sides. West Indies arrived on the back of a clean sweep in Ireland, and a dominant opening performance like this extends that momentum, while Zimbabwe — winless in the Championship cycle so far — will need a sharp response to avoid falling further behind in the standings.
Matthews already captains a West Indies side that has increasingly built its white-ball identity around her all-round form, and an innings of this scale — at a strike rate close to 117 in a 50-over format — reinforces her standing as one of the format's most dangerous top-order batters heading into a busy Championship cycle. For a Zimbabwe attack still searching for its first win of the cycle, containing an in-form Matthews will be the immediate priority when the series resumes.
The second ODI of the series follows at the same venue on September 27, with West Indies looking to seal the series and Zimbabwe needing a response with both bat and ball to stay in contention. The third ODI closes out the 50-over leg on September 30, before both sides switch to a three-match T20I series in early October.
Live scores from the remaining matches are available on SportGod's live matches page, with more women's cricket coverage on SportGod's blog and AI-powered match previews on SportGod's predictions page.
Scores, the record comparison to Stafanie Taylor's 2013 innings, and series context are verified against same-day match reporting, current as of September 25, 2026.
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