Gujarat Giants defeated UP Warriorz by 45 runs in the Women’s Premier League on Thursday in Vadodara thanks to a calm, undefeated half-century from Sophie Devine and a disciplined bowling effort.
After the Warriorz decided to bowl, Gujarat overcame early setbacks to produce a respectable 153/8, with Devine anchoring the innings with a composed unbeaten 50.
The Giants ended a three-match losing trend and went back to winning ways after putting on a collective bowling display to bundle out the Warriorz for a pitiful 108 in 17.3 overs.
Left-arm spinner Rajeshwari Gayakwad, who returned with 3/16 in her comeback match, was Gujarat’s best bowler. Devine (2/16 in 3.3 overs) and Renuka Singh (2/20) each picked two wickets as Gujarat moved up to second place in the table behind leaders Royal Challengers Bengaluru, who have already qualified.
The Warriorz’s innings was interrupted by two early setbacks, and they never really settled while chasing 154. In the first over, Kiran Navgire overbalanced and was stumped off a wide for a golden duck, continuing her dismal run. The hosts were shaken during the powerplay when captain Meg Lanning and Phoebe Litchfield attempted to rebuild, but Lanning was dismissed for 14 after the ball deflected onto the stumps.
Harleen Deol’s problems persisted with a scratchy 12-ball 3, but captain Ashleigh Gardner broke the resistance by dismissing Litchfield for 32. The Warriorz collapsed to 93/7 as Rajeshwari used her best numbers to shift the tide of the match, dismissing Deepti Sharma early in her spell and striking three times in quick succession.
As UP fell to 94/8 in 16 overs, Devine’s all-around performance culminated with the dismissal of her New Zealand teammate Sophie Ecclestone, practically sealing the match.
Devine had earlier guided Gujarat to what turned out to be a more than sufficient score by steadying their innings with a calm performance under pressure.
The New Zealand veteran made the most of her opportunities going into the game, staying not out on 50 off 42 balls with three sixes and two fours to keep the innings together after three straight single-digit scores, including a duck in the prior game.
Devine, who was dropped on 35 off a no-ball after being almost run out early, capitalized by hitting two sixes off Shikha Pandey in the last over to help the Giants surpass 150, but they were still some 20 runs shy of what their fast start had predicted.
Gujarat raced at more than nine runs per over on the powerplay, but the Warriorz’s well-rounded attack cleverly pulled things back over the middle overs. With the new ball, pacer Kranti Goud was excellent, returning 2/18 with precise lines and lengths, including the wicket of Danni Wyatt-Hodge (14).
Sophie Ecclestone, who gave up just three runs in her first over, likewise applied the brakes early. As Deepti Sharma, Ecclestone, Chloe Tryon, and Asha Sobhana stifled the run flow in the middle overs, captain Meg Lanning skillfully rotated her spin bowling resources.
English left-arm spinner Ecclestone terminated Beth Mooney’s steady knock of 38 off 34 balls, while off-spinner Deepti Sharma dismissed Gujarat skipper Ashleigh Gardner (5). Then, as the pressure increased, Tryon removed Kanika Ahuja (6).
Wickets fell at regular intervals between the 13th and 16th overs, as the Giants were unable to strike a boundary. Gujarat had previously failed to sustain momentum after reaching 52/2 in the powerplay, but Devine’s late push gave them a competitive finish.
