WPL 2023: How the points table fare after the opening encounter

The first ever match of the Women’s IPL started with a bang with two heavyweights Gujarat Giants and Mumbai Indians facing each other at the DY Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai. Mumbai Indians thrashed the Giants in the tournament opener as they beat Gujarat by a whopping margin of 143 runs. 

Gujarat Giants opted to field first after winning the toss. Yatsika Bhatia departed quickly but Hayley Mathews played an attacking innings scoring 47 runs off 31 balls. But Harmanpreet Kaur stole the show, as she displayed a batting masterclass. She played some breathtaking shots in her innings of 65 off 30 balls scoring runs all round the park.

She played some picture perfect cover drives and played sweep shots ranging from fine leg to mid wicket. The skipper scored boundaries off 7 consecutive deliveries not sparing any bowler. Cameos from Amelia Kerr (45 not out off 24 deliveries) and Pooja Vastrakar (15 off 8) helped Mumbai Indians post a mamoth score of 207 runs. 

It was a very difficult mountain to climb for the Giants and they badly faltered under pressure. 

They were already in danger after Mooney suffered an injury in the opening over. Then, during the powerplay, they lost 4 wickets, utterly setting them behind the game. They were unable to recover after that. The fact that just two hitters reached double digits shows the misery of Gujarat batters. Saika Ishaque, who took a 4-fer, was Mumbai’s shining light with the ball.

The first match has set a perfect tone for the rest of the tournament. The shot making was of the highest quality and the spectators got their money’s worth. 

The five WPL franchises and television rights sales alone brought in close to $690 million, while the Indian Cricket Board has secured a strong roster of sponsors for the 22-match competition. The players auction held last month, when clubs had $1.45 million apiece to spend on players, saw some female cricketers earn the most money of their careers.

Playing XIs Gujarat

Beth Mooney (c & wk), Sabbhineni Meghana, Harleen Deol, Ashleigh Gardner, Annabel Sutherland, Dayalan Hemalatha, Georgia Wareham, Sneh Rana, Tanuja Kanwar, Monica Patel, Mansi Joshi

Playing XI Mumbai 

Hayley Matthews, Yastika Bhatia (wk), Harmanpreet Kaur (c), Nat Sciver-Brunt, Amelia Kerr, Amanjot Kaur, Pooja Vastrakar, Humaira Kazi, Issy Wong, Jintimani Kalita, Saika Ishaque

Points Table

After a massive victory against the Giants, the Mumbai Indians stand firmly at the top of the table. Giants have a a negative NRR of 7.15 and they look much behind in the tournament already.

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