Vadodara, Jan 21 (PTI) UP Warriorz will start with a clear edge when they take on a struggling Gujarat Giants here on Thursday, as the race for the remaining two playoff spots in the Women’s Premier League heats up.
Former champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru have already sealed qualification with five wins from five matches, while Delhi Capitals’ seven-wicket win on Tuesday has thrown the rest of the table wide open.
Mumbai Indians, UP Warriorz, Delhi and Gujarat are all locked on four points, with the net run rate separating them.
Having secured back-to-back wins, Warriorz are ahead of Gujarat who are languishing at the bottom with three losses on the trot.
Gujarat, however, will take confidence from their victory over UP Warriorz in the first leg.
In what was their opening match of the season, Gujarat restricted the Warriorz to 197/8 and successfully defended 207 with disciplined bowling to secure their first win.
They followed it up with a four-run win over Delhi Capitals, again crossing the 200-run mark. But their campaign has since unravelled as their batting lost momentum.
Despite scoring 192/5 against Mumbai Indians, Gujarat lost, triggering a slide that has seen them bundled out for 150 chasing 183 against RCB, before managing just 117/8 while chasing 179 in their previous outing, against the same team.
Their troubles have been compounded by the poor form of their senior batters.
Australian wicketkeeper-batter Beth Mooney has endured a lean season, scoring just 95 runs from five innings at an average of 19, with a top score of 33.
Sophie Devine’s struggles have mirrored that downturn, with scores of 8, 8 and 0 in her last three matches. Anushka Sharma has returned but has not been able to fire yet, denying them the solid starts that marked their early wins.
Skipper Ashleigh Gardner has carried much of the load, leading the team’s run charts with two half-centuries. Promoting herself up the order again could be a solution as Gujarat search for a revival.
UP Warriorz, on the other hand, come into the match buoyed by their bowling performances after a stuttering start to the tournament.
After opening with three losses — against Gujarat, RCB and Delhi Capitals — they stunned Mumbai Indians by defending 161/5 and then completed a double over the defending champions by restricting them to 165/6 in another disciplined display.
Their bowling attack has been as one of the strongest in the competition, with Kranti Goud, Shikha Pandey and Deandra Dottin forming a potent pace trio, well supported by a quality spin unit featuring Sophie Ecclestone, Deepti Sharma and Asha Shobana.
However, Deepti’s lack of runs has been a concern, barring a 45 not out against RCB in a losing cause. She has otherwise managed scores of 1, 2 and 0, hurting the Warriorz’ middle-order stability.
With Lanning and Phoebe Litchfield capable of dismantling any attack at the top, UP Warriorz will hope to make the top-three in the playoff race.
Teams (from): ========== Gujarat Giants: Ashleigh Gardner (c), Beth Mooney, Sophie Devine, Renuka Singh Thakur, Bharti Fulmali, Titas Sadhu, Kashee Gautam, Kanika Ahuja, Tanuja Kanwer, Georgia Wareham, Anushka Sharma, Happy Kumari, Kim Garth, Yastika Bhatia, Shivani Singh, Danni Wyatt-Hodge, Rajeshwari Gayakwad and Ayushi Soni.
UP Warriorz: Meg Lanning (c), Shweta Sehrawat, Deepti Sharma, Sophie Ecclestone, Phoebe Litchfield, Kiran Navgire, Harleen Deol, Kranti Goud, Asha Sobhana, Deandra Dottin, Shikha Pandey, Shipra Giri, Simran Shaikh, Chloe Tryon, Suman Meena, G. Trisha, Pratika Rawal and Charli Knott.
Match starts: 7.30pm. PTI TAP PM TAP PM PM
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