Schutt, Healy star as Australia seal ODI series sweep

Megan Schutt has made history with a one-day international hat-trick as Australia claimed an ODI clean sweep against the West Indies in Antigua.

Schutt became the first Australian woman to take an ODI hat-trick when she cleaned up the Windies tail with three wickets from the final three balls of the innings.

Needing 181 for a 3-0 series sweep, a 27-ball half-century from Alyssa Healy put the tourists well on track in the chase before Meg Lanning (58no) and Ellye Perry(33no) saw Australia home with eight wickets in hand in the 32nd over.

It stretched the No.1 ranked Australian's ODI winning streak to 15 matches, as Meg Lanning's team completed a fifth-straight unblemished series.

Schutt’s hat-trick, her second in international cricket, was the icing on the cake of another strong bowling display from Australia, who were sent into the field after captain Lanning – who returned to the XI after missing the second ODI due to back spasms – lost the toss.

Healy’s outstanding series continued when she struck a rapid-fire 61 from 32 deliveries, to finish with 241 runs at 80.33 across the three matches.

Her whirlwind knock featured 11 fours and one six and while her departure in the eighth over brought temporary relief for the West Indian attack – as did the departure of opener Rachael Haynes for 19 – Lanning and Perry ensured the result was never in doubt.

Lanning's 13th ODI half-century also saw her bring up a special slice of history, with her 47th run taking her to 6222 runs across all international formats, surpassing Karen Rolton to become Australia's greatest female run scorer.

Earlier, Perry took just four deliveries to strike with the ball, becoming just the second Australian woman to take 150 ODI wickets when Reniece Boyce departed for one.

Slow and steady was the approach taken by West Indian pair Kyshona Knight and Britney Cooper in the face of a disciplined start from Schutt and Perry, with just 18 runs scored from the first 10 overs.

Knight looked the more comfortable at the crease while batting partner Cooper – a late addition to the squad in place of the injured Kycia Knight – battled her way to 16 from 51 deliveries before being brought undone by the leg-spin of Georgia Wareham in the 17th over.

West Indies captain Stafanie Taylor joined Knight as the pair put on 41 for the third wicket to frustrate the Australian attack, but the introduction of left-arm spinner Jess Jonassen reaped immediate rewards, Knight bowled for a 72-ball 40.

The hosts were relying on Taylor – their most decorated one-day player with more than 4,500 runs and five centuries her name – to bat through the innings, but she managed just 23 runs from 50 deliveries when she holed out off the bowling of Ashleigh Gardner.

In just her second international match, it was again No.8 Sheneta Grimmond who showed up her top-order with an aggressive display, dispatching Wareham over the boundary twice during a 24-ball 34.

She put on 64 for the seventh wicket with Chinelle Henry (39 off 58) before being bowled by Jonassen, lifting the West Indian total towards 200.

But their hopes of reaching that milestone were thwarted with a superb final over from Schutt, who took three wickets with her final three deliveries to become the first woman to claim two hat-tricks in international cricket.

The Australian spearhead had bowled well without reward through her first 9.3 overs before striking the triple blow to have the hosts bowled out for 180.

First, she bowled aggressive allrounder Henry for 39 with a slower delivery, before a canny change in the field – placing fielders on the ropes at long on and long off – achieved the immediate result when Karishma Ramharack plucked out Perry on the boundary next ball.

With one delivery remaining in the innings, Schutt again produced a slower ball to deceive Afy Fletcher and strike the top of off stump.

Her efforts were backed up by those of Jonassen, whose finished with the superb figures of 2-8 from 7 overs, including two maidens.

With the one-day internationals done and dusted, the Australian and West Indian squads will fly to Barbados on Thursday where the first T20I will be played on Saturday at 7pm local time (9am Sunday AEST).

Fans in Australia, New Zealand and Papua New Guinea can stream the series live and free on cricket.com.au and the CA Live App, while fans elsewhere can watch on the West Indies Cricket YouTube channel.

CommBank Tour of the West Indies

Australia squad: Meg Lanning (c), Rachael Haynes (vc), Erin Burns, Nicola Carey, Ashleigh Gardner, Heather Graham, Alyssa Healy, Jess Jonassen, Delissa Kimmince, Beth Mooney, Ellyse Perry, Megan Schutt, Tayla Vlaeminck, Georgia Wareham

West Indies ODI squad: Stafanie Taylor (c), Hayley Matthews (vc), Reniece Boyce, Afy Fletcher, Chinelle Henry, Shamilia Connell, Stacy Ann King, Natasha McLean, Kycia Knight, Kyshona Knight, Anisa Mohammed, Karishma Ramharack, Shabika Gajnabi

One-Day Internationals*
*ICC Women's Championship matches

First ODI: Australia won by 178 runs

Second ODI: Australia won by 151 runs

September 11: Third ODI, Sir Viv Richards Ground, Antigua

Twenty20 Internationals

September 14: First T20I, Kensington Oval, Barbados

September 16: Second T20I, Kensington Oval, Barbados

September 18: Third T20I, Kensington Oval, Barbados