In the Eliminator match of the Women’s Premier League (WPL) 2023, Mumbai Indians (MI) defeated UP Warriorz by 72 runs at the DY Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai.
After winning the toss, Alyssa Healy opted to bowl first which turned out to be a tricky decision as the Mumbai-based batters were at their best in this knockout match. Both the openers, Yastika Bhatia (21) and Hayley Matthews (26) provided a decent start in the powerplay which was later enhanced by Natt Sciver-Brunt’s (72*) outstanding half century. With nine fours and two sixes, the right-handed batter took MI to a massive total 182 in 20 overs. Along with Sciver-Brunt, captain Harmanpreet Kaur (14) and Melie Kerr (29) also contributed few runs towards the end of the first inning.
While chasing, UP Warriorz had a shaky start which then was handled, for a while, well courtesy Kiran Navgire’s (43) fantastic knock. No other batter showed enough intent to bat deep in the innings which could have helped the team reach anywhere near the target. Grace Harris (14) and Deepti Sharma (16) were the other two batters to have a decent number of score to their name.
Issy Wong scalped four wickets, while defending in the second innings, which included a hat-trick in her third over. Saika Ishaque also managed to take two wickets while one wicket each was also claimed by Sciver-Brunt and Matthews.
For UP Warriorz with the ball, Sophie Ecclestone managed to pluck two wickets. One wicket each was also bagged by the Anjali Sarvani and Parshavi Chopra.
Natt Sciver-Brunt was awarded as the player of the match for her amazing batting performance. Following this win, Mumbai Indians have advanced to the finals of the WPL 2023 and will face Delhi Capitals (DC) on March 26 at the Brabourne stadium in Mumbai.
Scorecard:
Mumbai Indians: 182/4, Overs 20, Natt Sciver-Brunt 72*, Sophie Ecclestone 2/39
UP Warriorz: 110/10, Overs 17.4, Kiran Navgire 43, Issy Wong 4/15