West Indies captain Hayley Matthews entered the record books in emphatic fashion on 24 September 2026, becoming the first woman to score ODI centuries against nine different teams. The 28-year-old all-rounder reached the landmark with a spectacular 182 from 156 balls against Zimbabwe at the Harare Sports Club, surpassing South Africa captain Laura Wolvaardt’s previous benchmark of centuries against eight countries.
Hayley Matthews’ record-breaking innings came in the first ODI of West Indies historic first-ever white-ball bilateral series against Zimbabwe, led by Josephine Nkomo. After winning the toss, Matthews chose to bat first and opened the innings alongside Realeanna Grimmond. She combined authority with remarkable endurance, striking 26 boundaries and two sixes during an innings that became the highest individual score of her ODI career.
Her nine opponents on the century list are Zimbabwe, Ireland, Pakistan, New Zealand, South Africa, Scotland, India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. The achievement reflects the breadth of Matthews’ influence across conditions and opponents, while also underlining her evolution from an explosive young batter into one of the most complete leaders in women’s cricket.
The innings also elevated Matthews to fourth on the list of the highest individual scores by a captain in women’s ODIs. Only Australia’s Belinda Clark, who made 229 not out, Sri Lanka’s Chamari Athapaththu, who scored 195 not out, and Wolvaardt, with 184 not out, have recorded higher scores as ODI captains. Matthews’ dominance in Harare extended beyond centuries. She also became the first woman to register 50-plus scores against 11 different opposition teams in women’s ODI cricket. In addition to the nine nations against which she has scored centuries, her list includes Australia and Thailand.
The milestone innings carried another significant achievement. Matthews entered the match 52 runs short of 7,000 international runs and crossed the landmark during her commanding stay at the crease. Her 182 helped West Indies post 299/6 in their quota of 50 overs, before the visitors completed a 99-run victory to take a 1-0 lead in the three-match ODI series. Matthews was named Player of the Match.
Hayley Matthews made her international debut in a T20I against New Zealand at Kingstown on 27 September 2014. Since then, she has scored 3,382 runs at a strike rate of 115.74 and an average of 29.15 in 127 innings, including 21 half-centuries and three centuries across 127 matches. Her ODI debut came against Australia at Sydney on 11 November 2014. She has since accumulated 3,748 runs at a strike rate of 79.12 and an average of 37.48 in 106 innings, with eight half-centuries and 13 centuries in 109 matches.
With West Indies leading 1-0, the two teams will return to the Harare Sports Club for the second ODI on 27 September. The match will begin at 1 PM IST, as Matthews looks to build on an innings that has added a remarkable new chapter to her already distinguished international career.
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