Sports

WPL 2025: Gardner Sees Silver Linings in Gujarat’s Defeat as Mumbai Continues to Reign

Published

11 months ago

March 12, 2025

Despite enduring their sixth straight loss to the Mumbai Indians in the Women’s Premier League (WPL), Gujarat Giants captain Ashleigh Gardner remains hopeful about overcoming them in the knockout phase after a narrow nine-run defeat at the Brabourne Stadium.

Choosing to bat first, the Mumbai Indians established a strong foundation, thanks to solid contributions from Hayley Matthews (27 off 22) and Nat Sciver-Brunt (38 off 31). However, it was captain Harmanpreet Kaur who took charge, delivering a well-crafted 54 runs off 33 balls, skillfully combining innovative shots and powerful strikes. Amanjot Kaur played the ideal finisher’s role, smashing 27 runs off just 15 balls, while Yastika Bhatia’s quick 13 off four deliveries further bolstered MI’s total of 179/6.

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With a new opening pair of Kashvee Gautam and Beth Mooney, Gujarat aimed for a steady start. Mooney struck an early boundary against Shabnim Ismail, but Mumbai’s disciplined bowling soon put them under pressure. Mooney fell early for just 7 runs off 9 balls, caught at cover off Hayley Matthews.

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Harleen Deol brought some energy to the innings with a brisk 24 off 17, but her dismissal through DRS off Amelia Kerr marked a pivotal moment in the match. Kashvee Gautam (10 off 14) struggled for rhythm before being stumped off debutant Sanskriti Gupta, while Gardner also fell for a duck, edging Ismail to slip.

“We were aware this was a high-scoring venue and felt we could have limited them to 160 runs. Not saving runs becomes critical in the second innings. However, knowing we are in the finals gave us some leeway to approach it boldly,” Gardner remarked post-match. “Bharti (Fulmali) demonstrated her capabilities today, instilling confidence for the final. We aim to rewrite our record against Mumbai in that crucial game.”

As the match slipped away, Bharti Fulmali entered at No. 7 and made a significant difference. She launched a stunning counterattack, scoring 61 runs off just 25 balls, becoming only the second player in WPL history to achieve a fifty while batting at No. 7 or lower.

Fulmali aggressively tackled Mumbai’s seasoned bowling, hitting Amelia Kerr for a six and a four in the same over. She received support from Simran Shaikh (18 off 10) and Tanuja Kanwar (10 off 6) as Gujarat aimed for a remarkable comeback.

With five overs remaining, Gujarat needed 50 runs, and as Fulmali found her rhythm, Mumbai started to feel the mounting pressure.

However, just when it seemed Gujarat was poised for a spectacular finish, Fulmali was dismissed at a crucial moment, misplaying a shot against Amelia Kerr. A run-out of Tanuja Kanwar added to Gujarat’s troubles, and even with Simran Shaikh’s six over long-on, Mumbai’s experience saw them through in the closing moments. Matthews took down Shaikh, and Priya Mishra’s desperate LBW review was unsuccessful, leading to her dismissal on the next delivery and sealing Mumbai’s victory.

Player of the Match Harmanpreet Kaur acknowledged Gujarat’s batters, especially Fulmali, for creating a competitive game.

“We bowled well in stretches, but we have to credit their batters; they kept the match alive. We’ll review what went wrong and apply those lessons in the next game. We set a decent target and were competitive in the first 10 overs, but Bharti’s performance today was commendable. It’s all about match-ups, and our experience in bowling proved crucial,” Harmanpreet reflected after the match.

Mumbai’s bowlers performed admirably under pressure, with Amelia Kerr (3-34), Hayley Matthews (3-38), and Shabnim Ismail (2-17) playing pivotal roles.

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Sports

T20 World Cup | Pakistan Edge Past Netherlands in a Close Contest

Published

9 hours ago

February 7, 2026

Namma Kudla

Colombo: The T20 World Cup began today with an exciting match between Pakistan and the Netherlands. Pakistan secured a narrow three-wicket victory despite a strong bowling performance. However, the top-order batters failed to deliver. With this win, Pakistan made a positive start to the 10th edition of the tournament.

After losing the toss, the Netherlands batted first at the Sinhalese Sports Club Ground in Colombo. The team was bowled out for 147 runs in 19.5 overs. Pakistan chased the modest target and scored 148 runs for the loss of seven wickets in 19.3 overs.

Pakistan started aggressively, but the Netherlands slowed their progress. Pakistan lost four wickets for 98 runs. Soon, they were in trouble at 114 for seven. Faheem Ashraf played a crucial role at the end and guided the team to victory.

For Pakistan, Sahibzada Farhan scored 47 runs, while Saim Ayub added 24 runs. Faheem Ashraf contributed an important 29 runs. The rest of the batters failed to score big. Star batter Babar Azam disappointed fans by scoring only 15 runs off 18 balls.

Earlier, Netherlands captain Scott Edwards scored 37 runs. Bas de Leede made 30 runs, Colin Ackermann added 20, and Michael Levitt scored 24 runs. The remaining batters were dismissed for low scores.

Sports

India Clinch Record Sixth Under-19 World Cup Title

Published

13 hours ago

February 7, 2026

Namma Kudla

Sports: India defeated England by 100 runs to win the ICC Under-19 Men’s Cricket World Cup 2026 final at the Harare Sports Club. The victory marked India’s sixth title, making them the most successful team in the tournament’s history.

India batted first and posted a massive total of 411 for 9 in 50 overs. The innings was powered by 14-year-old Vaibhav Suryavanshi, who smashed a record-breaking 175 runs off just 80 balls. His knock included 15 fours and 15 sixes and became the highest individual score ever in an Under-19 World Cup final.

Suryavanshi also shared a crucial 142-run partnership with captain Ayush Mhatre, who scored 53 runs. Their strong batting display helped India set a daunting target of 412 for England.

England tried to fight back in the chase, with Caleb Falconer scoring 115 and Ben Dawkins adding 66. However, the team was eventually bowled out for 311, handing India a comfortable victory.

Suryavanshi was named Player of the Match and Player of the Tournament for his historic performance. The triumph once again highlighted India’s dominance in youth cricket on the global stage.

Sports

Storm in the First Over: RCB Create New WPL Record

Published

3 weeks ago

January 17, 2026

Namma Kudla

Royal Challengers Bengaluru created history in the Women’s Premier League by scoring the highest number of runs in the first over of a match. RCB scored a massive 23 runs in the opening over, setting a new WPL record.

This historic moment took place during the match against Gujarat Giants at the DY Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai. Gujarat Giants bowler Renuka Singh Thakur conceded 23 runs in the first over, making it the most expensive opening over in WPL history.

Renuka began the over with a wide delivery. The ball went past the wicketkeeper and crossed the boundary, resulting in five runs. RCB batter Grace Harris then took charge of the over. She smashed four consecutive boundaries, putting the Gujarat Giants under pressure.

During the over, Renuka Singh bowled two more wides, adding extra runs to the total. On the final delivery of the over, Grace Harris struck another boundary. This completed a dramatic and record-breaking first over for RCB.

With this, Renuka Singh Thakur recorded the most expensive first over ever bowled in the Women’s Premier League. The previous record was held by Tanuja Kanwar. She had conceded 21 runs in the first over while playing for Gujarat Giants against Mumbai Indians in the 2023 season.

In the same match, Royal Challengers Bengaluru batted first and put up a strong total. RCB scored 182 runs for the loss of seven wickets in 20 overs. The team showed aggressive batting throughout the innings.

Gujarat Giants chased the target but failed to keep up with the required run rate. They were bowled out for 150 runs in 18.5 overs. As a result, Royal Challengers Bengaluru won the match by 32 runs.

This victory strengthened RCB’s position in the tournament and added a historic achievement to the Women’s Premier League records.