Vadodara, Feb 16 Leg-spinner Priya Mishra broke the back of the UP Warriorz batting line-up and helped Gujarat Giants restrict them to 143/9 in their 20 overs in match three of WPL 2025 at the Kotambi Stadium on Sunday.
Electing to bowl first, the Giants ensured that the Warriorz never had it in them to post a big total. Though Deepti Sharma, playing her first WPL game as UP captain and keeper Uma Chetry tried stabilising the innings with a 51-run stand for the third wicket, Priya’s superb triple strike in the middle overs meant that never happened.
With Alana King and Saima Thakor taking 26 runs off the last two overs, it meant the Warriorz crossed 140-mark. Though the Giants will confident of chasing it down, the Warriorz have Deepti, Alana and the top-ranked Sophie Ecclestone to defend 143, which is now the lowest total of this WPL season.
The Warriorz had a good start to their innings, thanks to Kiran Navgire hitting three boundaries in the first two overs. But the Giants bounced back as Deandra Dottin got a quicker ball to move in and trap Kiran lbw, and was followed by captain Ashleigh Gardner castling Vrinda Dinesh cheaply.
Deepti was great in using her sweeps, heave and punch for boundaries, while Uma was proficient in finding fours via slog-sweep, slam down the ground and sweeping in the gap between mid-wicket and long-on. But Deandra came back in the 10th over and had Uma pull a short ball to mid-on.
From there, it was Priya’s show all the way as she trapped Tahlia McGrath lbw with a googly for duck, followed by castling Grace Harris with the same wrong’un. She then signed off from the middle overs by bowling a slower delivery outside off-stump which Deepti looked to slog, but it came off the toe-end and was caught by a diving Ashleigh at mid-off.
After Ashleigh and Kashvee Gautam castled Shweta Sehrawat and Sophie Ecclestone respectively, Alana showed off her batting skills by heaving and cutting Deandra for six and four respectively.
In the final over, Saima took over by edging, reverse-sweeping and slamming for her three fours off Ashleigh, with the last one coming after the ball burst through Laura Wolvaardt’s hands at long-on. Though Saima was run out on the last ball, she and Alana ensured the Warriorz posted a respectable total on board.
Brief Scores: UP Warriorz 143/9 in 20 overs (Deepti Sharma 39, Uma Chetry 24; Priya Mishra 3-25, Deandra Dottin 2-34) against Gujarat Giants
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