The Women’s T20 League resumed play on Saturday as the competition prepared for a doubleheader. The table-toppers Mumbai took on UP in the day’s opening match at the Wankhede Stadium. UP has had a hit-and-miss season thus far, earning four points from two victories out of five games to place third in the standings.
About the game, UP chose to bowl first after winning the toss. Mumbai was given the opportunity to bat first, but they could not capitalise on the opportunity as they were bowled out for 127 in just 20 overs, thanks to some outstanding fielding by UP. Only three Mumbai hitters, Harmanpreet Kaur (25 off 22), Issy Wong (32 off 19), and Hayley Matthews (35 off 30), were able to score in double figures.
Sophie Ecclestone remained the star with the ball for UP
Superstar bowler Sophie Ecclestone, who bowled four overs for UP, finished with a three-wicket haul, allowing 15 runs. Rajeshwari Gayakwad and Deepti Sharma, at the same time, returned with two wickets each. The excellent fielding effort by UP also included two run-outs.
In reply, Gujarat were off to a disastrous start losing three wickets for just 27 runs. However, Tahlia McGrath and Grace Harris combined for a rebuilding mission scoring 38 off 25 and 39 off 28, respectively. In the end, Sophie Ecclestone and Deepti Verma completed the remainder of the job as Gujarat handed Mumbai their first defeat of the series. Amelia Kerr returned with two wickets for Mumbai as Issy Wong, Nat-Sciver Brunt, and Hayley Matthews had one scalp apiece.
The bottom two teams, Bangalore and Gujarat, will compete for pride in the day’s second game. The two teams will compete for glory at the Brabourne Stadium and try to stay alive in the inaugural Women’s T20 League, despite their paths to the playoffs seeming more difficult than ever. It will be a must-win game for Bangalore if they want to stay alive in the competition. A net run rate advantage can still see the franchise qualify for the playoffs.
Here’s how fans reacted to Mumbai’s first defeat of the season:
ą¤ą¤²ą„…ą¤¹ą¤¾ą¤°ą¤Øą¤¾ ą¤ą¤°ą„ą¤°ą„ ą¤ą„ ą¤„ą¤¾..ą¤µą¤°ą¤Øą¤¾ ą¤Ŗą„ą¤²ą„ ą¤ą¤« ą¤øą„ ą¤Ŗą¤¹ą¤²ą„ ą¤ą¤®ą¤ą¤” ą¤ ą¤ą¤¾ą¤¤ą¤¾..Invincible ą¤øą¤®ą¤ą¤Øą„ ą¤²ą¤ą¤¤ą„ ą¤ą„ą¤¦ ą¤ą„..It is Wake up call to MI.
— Barkha Joshi (@bindasbarkha) March 18, 2023
Kala teeka lagwaya hai MI Women ne šāļø
— Fat Batman š¦ (@aloobondapro) March 18, 2023
We all know why they lost šš…
Fixer team bc chumbai ….
All fixers playing …
Mc team of the wpl— Haider Khan š®š³š (@ind_iw0) March 18, 2023
If ipl is not fixed league rcb have 15 title in their cabinet right now.
— aashu (@Damselindreams) March 18, 2023
RCB Fans during every IPL pic.twitter.com/Cgz60Mpn5J
— Sumit (@_RKSumit) March 18, 2023
Understand the painšš pic.twitter.com/jSITJBPp5H
— tweet chorš„³ (@MSdhoni_DHF) March 18, 2023
ā¤ļøš«¶ pic.twitter.com/fE36thSCNs
— Ashish Shrivastava (@ashishayush1177) March 18, 2023
And UP kick Harcb out of the tournament pic.twitter.com/x8YCu6AP78
— Helicopter š 07 (@BeingShafeeque) March 18, 2023
