St. John's (Antigua), Oct 21 (IANS/CMC): West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) president Julian Hunte has lauded the women's team for reaching the semi-finals in the recent ICC Women's World Twenty20 Tournament in Sri Lanka.

"On behalf of the board I commend the West Indies women's team for achieving the WICB's stated goal of the team finishing in top four of the tournament," Hunte said.

"While the team did not make it out of the semi-final stage they have demonstrated that they are meeting their development targets as outlined in the WICB Strategic Plan 2011-2016.

"Our West Indies women's team is developing at a rapid pace as a result of the support systems which have been put in place to achieve this including Women's Retainer Contracts and various specialist training and preparatory camps," he added.

"We now look forward to the team winning a world tournament by 2016 which is the next strategic target.

"The advancement of the status of women's cricket in the Caribbean and the West Indies women's team is testimony to the leadership of captain Merissa Aguilleira and her players, particularly the senior players, the head coach and the team management.

"It must also be recognised also that our women players have been flying the flag of West Indies Cricket through their individual performances by achieving the highest levels on the player ranking charts, particularly Stafanie Taylor, Anisa Mohammed, Deandra Dottin, Aguilleira and Shanel Daley," Hunte said.

Aguilleira said the team worked hard in preparations and showed they are committed to further development.

"The team has improved from the last World T20 even though we did not advance to the final but our win against New Zealand was mind blowing and topping our group was also a highlight.

"One thing we must highlight is that President Hunte was present at all of our matches and that was well appreciated by the team. We felt honoured to have President Hunte with us, lending his support to the team throughout the tournament," Aguilleira said.