The Women’s Premier League (WPL) 2024 is moving a speed of knots and it has already entered match six. Reigning champions Mumbai Indians will lock horns against Alyssa Healy’s UP Warriorz with the latter heartbreakingly losing their opening match to Royal Challengers Bangalore by two runs.
As for Harmanpreet Kaur-led Mumbai Indians, they defeated Delhi Capitals on the opening day with a fabulous 4-wicket win and followed it up with five-wicket win over Gujarat Giants in match three.
Kaur is leading the MI side from the front with two great knocks of 55 and 46 under pressure. Their bowling department have shone with the ball as well with the likes of Shabnim Ismail, Natalie Sciver-Brunt, Amelia Kerr and Pooja Vastrakar all posing problems to the opposing batters.
For UP Warriorz, the trio of Healy, Grace Harris and Tahila McGrath’s poor run need to be sorted out.
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| Sky Sports Mix | Watch |
| Willow Cricket Extra | Watch |
Squads:
Mumbai Indians – Amanjot Kaur, Amelia Kerr, Chloe Tyron, Harmanpreet Kaur (C), Hayley Matthews, Humairaa Kazi, Isabelle Wong, Jintimani Kalita, Natalie Sciver-Brunt, Pooja Vastrakar, Priyanka Bala, Saika Ishaque, Yastika Bhatia, Shabnim Ismail, Sajeevan Sajana, Amandeep Kaur, Fatima Jaffer, Keerthana Balakrishnan
UP Warriorz – Alyssa Healy (C), Anjali Sarvani, Deepti Sharma, Grace Harris, Kiran Navgire, Chamari Athapaththu, Laxmi Yadav, Parshavi Chopra, Rajeshwari Gayakwad, Yashasri, Shweta Sehrawat, Sophie Ecclestone, Tahlia McGrath, Danielle Wyatt, Vrinda Dinesh, Saima Thakor, Poonam Khenmar, Gouher Sultana
Let’s take a peek at three key player battles that could influence the outcome of the MI-W vs UPW-W game.
1) Shabnim Ismail Vs Alyssa Healy
Despite the tournament in it’s early stages but MI’s Shabnim Ismail is running the show in the Women’s Premier League 2024. The South African has scalped four wickets so far at an average of 10.50 in 4 matches. As for Alyssa Healy, the Aussie captain was outfoxed by her compatriot Sophie Molineux in their opening match for five runs but will look for a better show against Mumbai Indians. Ismail’s pace is lethal in the opening overs but Healy’s power-hitting could be a great test between bat and ball.
2) Harmanpreet Kaur Vs Deepti Sharma
MI skipper Harmanpreet Kaur has so far scored over 100 runs in two matches at a strike rate of 134.67. Kaur has led Mumbai to a memorable WPL title in the inaugural season and it seems they are primed to repeat the act this time around. In her wake is her fellow India teammate Deepti Sharma. The wiley customer, who is called ‘Ben Stokes’ by her team’s coach, is a handy player with the ball and bat. If Sharma manages to curb the run-flow off Kaur’s bat, UP Warriorz could have a say in the outcome of the match.
3) Natalie Sciver-Brunt Vs Sophie Ecclestone
In this battle of the two English teammates, Nat Sciver-Brunt will test her batting acumen when she locks horns against Sophie Ecclestone when Mumbai Indians take on UP Warriorz in the WPL 2024 fixture on Wednesday. Sciver-Brunt has not been impressive so far with the bat but the English batter is a proven player but her duel with Ecclestone will be a treat for the neutrals. Sciver-Brunt’s batting against Ecclestone’s spin wizardry could be one of the deciding factors in this WPL tie.
