The hopes of two Australian stars leading their sides into the final of the Women’s Premier League in India has been dashed after Ash Gardner’s Gujarat Giants suffered a heavy defeat at the penultimate hurdle.
Seeking to set up a clash with Meg Lanning’s already-qualified finalists Delhi Capitals, Gardner’s team were hammered in Thursday’s eliminator by Mumbai Indians, who prevailed by 47 runs at their home Brabourne Stadium to book their spot in Saturday’s final in the same arena.
It will be a repeat of the inaugural final in 2023 when Lanning, then captain of Australia, led Delhi against India skipper Harmanpreet Kaur’s Mumbai. On that occasion, also at Brabourne, Mumbai won by seven wickets.
On Thursday, Harmanpreet’s side delivered a rampant performance, with their star international allrounders Hayley Matthews and Nat Sciver-Brunt continuing their stellar form.
Asked to bat by Gardner, the Indians recorded the second highest WPL total ever, 4-213, with both Barbadian Matthews (50 balls) and England’s Sciver-Brunt (41 balls) smashing their way to 77 apiece.
They shared a thunderous 12-over second-wicket partnership of 133 before Harmanpreet came in to smack four sixes in a blistering 12-ball cameo of 36.
It was Sciver-Brunt’s fifth half-century in just nine matches as she leads the orange cap standings for tournament top-scorer with 493 runs, 121 more than the next best, Australian Ellyse Perry’s 372 for dethroned champs, Royal Challengers Bengaluru.
Seeking to pull off the biggest WPL win chase, the Giants’ three Australians were key, but when Beth Mooney (six) was caught brilliantly at slip by Matthews off Shabnim Ismail in the first over, it always looked unlikely.
Gardner, who’s had a brilliant first season as Gujarat skipper, went for broke seeking to end the Giants’ horrendous record against Mumbai, who’ve now won all seven of their clashes.
She hit the second ball she faced off Matthews’ spin for six – her record-extending 18th of the tournament – but perished, clean-bowled, three balls later to the same bowler, who’s now the tournament’s leading wicket-taker with 17 scalps.
Player-of-the-match Matthews (3-31) was well backed by Ismail (1-35), Sciver-Brunt (1-31) and New Zealander Amelia Kerr (2-28), who finally snuffed out Gujarat’s hopes when she outwitted the third Aussie, Phoebe Litchfield, getting her stumped for a combative 31 off 20 balls as the Giants folded for 166.
The Giants’ chances had already been harmed when star allrounder Deandra Dottin had to withdraw beforehand with a knee injury, although young Englishwoman Danielle Gibson filled in admirably with her 2-40 and 24-ball 34, before being one of three run-out victims.
“It’s been an absolute pleasure to lead this side,” said Gardner, who took over the captaincy this season from Mooney, and has led from the front with 243 runs, at a searing strike-rate of 164.18, and eight wickets.
“This group has got a lot to be proud of – so many positive stories, different people have stood up at different times, young players putting their name up in lights – that is what it is all about in tournaments like this.”
Content Source: www.perthnow.com.au