The defending champions posted a modest opening batting score of 107 for seven but it was enough to take the victory as a superb captain’s performance with the ball and a South African batting disaster helped the hosts take the points.

South Africa looked set to overhaul the West Indies’ tally of runs as they opened the battling on 48 for one at Daren Sammy National Cricket Ground.

Captain Stafanie Taylor took to the crease for West Indies bowling four consecutive overs and taking a wicket in each as South Africa slipped to 64 for five.

It was the beginning of the end as a South Africa lost their last five wickets for just one run.

It finished with South Africa all out for 76 as Taylor was awarded player of the match in the 31-run victory.

There were differing fortunes for South African captain Dane van Niekerk, who criticised her team’s batting performance after the match.

"I’m very disappointed, and what can we say with a batting display like that," she said.

Van Niekerk added: "I couldn’t ask for more from the bowlers, and the batters aren’t doing any justice to the bowlers.

"If you give full face of the bat, you get value for the shots.

"But we don’t seem to want to do that! I’ve no words to be honest.

"Leading up to the World Cup, our batters have been letting us down.

"We can’t have that in the World Cup."

Elsewhere, Sri Lanka picked up their first win of the tournament with a 25-run win over Bangladesh.

Another below par performance from Bangladesh’s batters, with only two of them making it into double figures, left them all out for 72 chasing Sri Lanka's total of 97. 

Sri Lanka’s Udeshika Prabhodani took two wickets in her first over to start the flow of Bangladesh’s defeat.