New Delhi, Dec 3 (PTI) Mumbai Indians’ bowling coach and mentor Jhulan Goswami says skipper Harmanpreet Kaur’s inputs during the recently-held Women’s Premier League auction led to the acquisition of players such as big-hitting all-rounder Amelia Kerr and pacer Shabnim Ismail.
MI have been the league’s most successful team so far, winning it twice since its inception in 2023.
On Harmanpreet’s role in the auction, Jhulan told JioHotstar, “As captain, Harman’s inputs are always crucial during auction planning. At the end of the day, she leads this team and has been incredibly successful.” “Her inputs have been the most important part of the entire auction process. Our job is to support her on and off the field. Having her at the auction table was a huge advantage, her thoughts mattered deeply, and they helped us retain the core of this team,” she added.
Explaining the team’s strategy, Jhulan said it was important to retain the strong support group of players.
“The important thing for us was to retain our strong support group of players. That’s how we’ve won two championships in the last three years. That was the basic plan, nothing more.” On their key buys this season, the former India fast bowler said, “Amelia Kerr (New Zealand) was a great buy. She gives us so much, variation, volume and balance. Over the last three years, she has performed exceptionally well in the tournament, and as an all-rounder, she is very important.
“Along with her, Shabnim Ismail (South Africa) was another excellent buy. We didn’t expect to get Shabnim at such a low price. So, from a budget perspective, our planning worked well. It was a pleasant surprise because we thought she would go for a much higher amount.” Deepti was always a priority: Nayar ======================= UP Warriorz head coach Abhishek Nayar spoke about the acquisition of key players like Deepti Sharma and Sophie Ecclestone.
While all-rounder Deepti won the player of the tournament award following India’s triumphant campaign in the ODI World Cup recently, English left-arm spinner Ecclestone was one of the event’s top performers with the ball.
“You rarely get a player who has performed consistently for so many years. Our thought process was simply to see how the auction unfolded. In many ways, our first retention was at Rs 3.5 crore, so getting her was essentially a steal for us.
“Deepti was always a priority. It’s a steal you don’t often see in Indian cricket. We’re always happy to have her back,” Nayar said.
On their most satisfying bid of the auction, he said, “I think most players went for the numbers we had prepared for. But Sophie Ecclestone was a surprise for us. She’s a marquee player and someone who has delivered for years. I had kept Rs 1.8 crore in mind, so getting her at Rs 85 lakh was a big surprise. I believe the timing worked in our favour.” Asked how effectively their auction plan was executed, Nayar said, “I think, barring Amelia, whom we missed out on, we managed to sign almost everyone we bid for. Shree Charani was a last-minute choice; she wasn’t originally in our plan.
“We thought getting Sophie could be tough, and if (Sree) Charani came in alongside her, it would have been ideal since they bowl in different phases. Now that she didn’t come, we’ll reassess.” PTI AH PM AH PM PM PM
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