MI won against DC to be the first WPL winners

Mumbai Indians (MI) registered themselves in the history of WPL by becoming the first ever champions of this league. The final match was held on March 26, Sunday at the Brabourne Stadium, Mumbai. MI was led by the Indian captain Harmanpreet Kaur. Mumbai Indians won against Delhi Capitals by seven wickets in a thriller and interesting match to achieve their WPL first edition trophy.

It was a match to be looked upon as most of the stands at the Brabourne Stadium were fully packed. A full-fledged Indian T20 league finals for women with a final match between the two best teams in the league. Big stars like Sachin Tendulkar, Rohit Sharma’s MI team as well as some BCCI’s top brass were present to witness the match. It was a night to remember for every supporter of women’s cricket who had hoped for such a tournament from years.

Harmanpreet had a brilliant exposure in more ways than one. After losing as team head in finals against Meg Lanning led Australian team. She failed with team at the 2020 T20 World Cup and also 2022 Commonwealth Games, but she got back with her own fine performance.

Here are some key highlight moments of the match:

A final with low scores

After being asked to bowl first, MI restricted DC to a score of 131/9. Mumbai Indians finished with a score of 134/3 in 19.3 overs. Earlier during the chase, Mumbai were in a spot of danger at 23/2, but Harmanpreet and Nat Sciver-Brunt showed their game. Their personalities boosted the match by adding a 72-run stand for the third wicket in the second inning.

Opener Yastika Bhatia hit a 4 but was sent on the next ball because of a full toss by Radha Yadav. Hayley Matthews hit three strong boundaries but was dismissed by Jess Jonassen. Delhi gave just a single each in the sixth and seventh overs of the match.

DC’s early instability

It was a slow start to the match as Delhi, the strongest competitor in the tournament just because of their powerplay batting, lost two wickets very early. Again it was Issy Wong who turned tables for Mumbai with her bowling. The 20 year old pacer from England achieved the first WPL hat-trick, in the eliminator round against UP Warriorz. This time, her bowling wasn’t as effective, but was strong enough to put MI in the driver’s seat.

Wong went on to finish with a score of 3/42, also all her wickets came out off full tosses. Shafali Verma hit a six and a four before getting dismissed. It was a high full toss, and the third umpire took a decision in Mumbai’s favor. The in-form Alice Capsey was also dismissed with a similar kind of high full toss. It was before Jemimah Rodrigues gave a low one to point.

DC were reduced to a 35/3 score in 4.2 overs. They now had their most experienced pair as Meg Lanning and Marizanne Kapp at the ground. They made a 38-run partnership but MI bounced back in the match by picking the next six wickets with just six runs.

A big turn in the innings came when Meg Lanning was run out in the 12th over. Matthews bowled a dynamic spell of 3/5 and Kerr was strong with 2/18. Also, the bowling was disciplined but MI even produced a super high class fielding with young talent Amanjot Kaur leading their way.

Sciver-Brunt became highlight

Harmanpreet and Sciver-Brunt took their time to settle down in the match and played many dot balls. But once they got settled, they began smashing boundaries. Mumbai based franchise was 95/2 after 16 overs when Kaur was declared run out. MI needed 36 runs off 24 balls and DC still believed that they had a good chance. Sciver-Brunt and Amelia Kerr closed the second inning for a win with even three balls to spare.

It was another phenomenal knock by cricketer Nat Sciver. The 30-year-old cricketer was the Player-of-the-Match in the eliminator round. It was because for her unbeaten 72 runs. She bagged the award again by showing her class with effortless stroke play all around the ground.

Earlier, Shikha Pandey and Radha Yadav, who were at 8th and 11th position respectively, became the last batting pair for DC. With their team at an unstable 79/9 score after 16 overs, the duo added an unbeaten 52 run partnership. It was the highest partnership for Delhi on that night. While Shikha began making the mini fightbacks, Radha also ended the innings with successive sixes. Eventually, it was this partnership that made the final a bit competitive.

Playing XI of Mumbai Indians

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

ALSO READ: https://sportsintell.com/indian-super-league-2022-23/