UP Warriorz defeated reigning champions Mumbai Indians by 22 runs in their Women’s Premier League (WPL) clash on Saturday in Navi Mumbai thanks to dominant half centuries from captain Meg Lanning and fellow Australian Phoebe Litchfield.
The victory demonstrated the UP Warriorz’s superiority over the Mumbai Indians in the fourth season of the WPL, after they had defeated them by 7 wickets on Thursday. While UP Warriorz won their second game in five, Mumbai suffered their third defeat in five matches.
When sent in to bat, Lanning (70) and Litchfield (61) added 119 runs for the second wicket off just 76 balls to take UP Warriorz to 187 for 8, making Mumbai bowling look ordinary.
Mumbai labored the entire time as they chased 188, with their best batters failing to make an impact. At the same team score of 23, openers Hayley Matthews (13) and Sajeevan Sajana (10) were removed, then Nat Sciver-Brunt (15) and Nicola Carey (6) were dismissed in rapid succession.
Harleen Deol, who had struck a match-winning 64 not out in Warriorz’s seven-wicket win over the same opponents on Thursday, pulled off a stunning diving catch to dismiss the in-form Carey. Mumbai were 62 for four at the halfway stage, needing more than 12 runs an over to chase down the target.
Mumbai’s problems were exacerbated when captain Harmanpreet Kaur (18) was dismissed in the 11th over by Chloe Tryon. Mumbai were reduced to 69/5. Amanjot Kaur (41 off 24 balls) and Amelia Kerr (49 not out off 28 balls) put up a heroic late fight with an 83-run partnership for the sixth wicket but it was too late in the day as Mumbai managed 165/6 in 20 overs.
With stats of 2/30, Shikha Pandey was the most successful bowler for the UP Warriors, giving up just 3 runs in the penultimate over while taking one wicket.
Kiran Navgire, the opener for UP Warriorz, was dismissed in the first over for a first-ball duck earlier, failing for the seventh time. After scores of 1, 5, 0, and 10, she squandered another opportunity when she tried to drive an inswinging delivery from Nicola Carey, only to have her wickets cartwheel.
But with an incredible display of aggressive batting, Australian great Lanning and emerging prodigy Litchfield made light of Navgire’s transgression. Before being dismissed in the 13th over at the team score of 124 for 2, Litchfield hit seven boundaries and three maximums from 37 balls for her 61.
In the subsequent over, Lanning, who faced 45 balls for her 70 and hit 11 fours and two sixes, did the same to take UP Warriorz to 136/3. Towards the end, Harleen Deol (25 off 16 balls) and Chloe Tryon (21 off 13 balls) made useful contributions.
The most successful bowlers from Mumbai were Amelia Kerr (3/28) and Nat Sciver-Brunt (2/22). Mumbai’s fielding performance was so poor that they dropped at least five catches.
