St Johns [Antigua], June 26 (ANI): Cricket West Indies (CWI) announced that all-rounder Hayley Matthews has been appointed as the skipper, replacing Stafanie Taylor.

Matthews, who is one of the leading all-rounders in world cricket, will assume the leadership role from Stafanie Taylor ahead of the next West Indies Women's Series, expected to be played later this year.

Taylor, the most successful female player in West Indies history and ranked among the all-time greats, has led the team for over seven years since 2015. She was at the helm when West Indies won the ICC Women's T20 World Cup in 2016 and earlier this year when they reached the semi-finals of the ICC Women's Cricket World Cup in New Zealand.

"The selection panel has done a review of the team including the leadership. After this review, the panel took the decision to recommend that Hayley Matthews takes over the role as captain. Hayley has made notable progress over the years, serving as Vice-Captain of the West Indies Women's Team and is the current captain of her National Team, Barbados," said Lead Selector for Women's cricket Ann Browne-John in a statement.

"We recognize that leading the team for seven years is a considerable achievement to which Stafanie has given huge levels of commitment and energy. We believe Stafanie is a world-class performer who will no doubt continue to add tremendous value to the team as one of the top all-rounders in the game," she added.

Matthews and Taylor have both been among the best players for West Indies. In her career, Taylor has scored 5,298 runs in 145 One-Day Internationals and 3,121 runs in 111 T20 Internationals. She has also taken 152 wickets in ODIs and 98 in T20Is.

"I am both humbled and honoured to be given the opportunity to Captain the West Indies Women's Team. It is definitely an exhilarating feeling and I welcome the experience to lead and learn with open arms. This team has been very close to my heart from the beginning of my professional career eight years ago and the influence of Stafanie's leadership throughout those eight years has played a major role in the player I am today," said Hayley Matthews.

"I would like to thank Stafanie for her astounding leadership of the team over the years. We've accomplished some of our biggest milestones with her at the forefront and I look forward to continuing playing alongside her," she added.

Matthews, like Taylor, is a right-handed top-order batter and off-break bowler. She has an impressive international record with 1,764 runs and 78 wickets in 69 ODIs, and 1,055 runs and 58 wickets in 61 T20Is. (ANI)