The highly anticipated second season of the Women’s Premier League gets underway on February 23. Five teams will battle it out for the big prize in women’s franchise cricket. The first half of the tournament will be played in Bangalore, while the second half, including the playoffs and the final, will be played in Delhi. Mumbai Indians won the tournament last year after defeating the Delhi Capitals in the final.
UP Warriorz
The UP Warriorz is one of the five participating teams in the WPL. Capri Global owns the team, with Jon Lewis as the coach and Alyssa Healy as the captain. In the first edition of the WPL, the team reached the eliminator but was defeated by the Mumbai Indians. This time, they will look to surpass their previous performance and bring the trophy home.
Sophie Ecclestone was their top wicket-taker last year with 16 scalps in nine matches. Their highest run-scorer was Tahlia McGrath, who scored 302 runs in eight innings. The Warriorz will begin their 2024 campaign on February 24 against the Royal Challengers Bangalore in Bengaluru.
UP Warriorz Squad
Alyssa Healy will remain as the captain. Lauren Bell is unavailable due to national commitments, which means there is a chance for Sri Lankan’s Chamari Athapaththu to step in. The franchise’s most expensive buy at the auction was Vrinda Dinesh for a massive sum of Rs 1.3 crore. Their second top buy was Danni Wyatt for Rs 30 lakh. They also roped in Poonam Khemnar for Rs 10 lakh, Saima Thakor for Rs 10 lakh and Gouher Sultana for Rs 30 lakh.
The Warriorz have some amazing overseas players who have done well in white-ball cricket. With Australian stars like Healy, Tahlia McGrath, and Grace Harris, along with Athapaththu and Danni Wyatt, the side boasts some of the best in the business. But when it comes to fast bowling, there’s not much confidence. Shabnim Ismail was not retained, and Bell pulled out of the tournament, leaving UPW short on experienced fast bowlers. McGrath and Anjali Sarvani will have to do most of the work.
UP Warriorz full squad – Alyssa Healy, Anjali Sarvani, Deepti Sharma, Grace Harris, Kiran Navgire, Lauren Bell, Laxmi Yadav, Parshavi Chopra, Rajeshwari Gayakwad, S. Yashasri, Shweta Sehrawat, Sophie Ecclestone, Tahlia McGrath, Dani Wyatt, Vrinda Dinesh, Saima Thakor, Poonam Khemnar, Gouher Sultana.
Predicted XI – Alyssa Healy (c & wk), Vrinda Dinesh, Shweta Sehrawat, Kiran Navgire, Grace Harris, Tahlia McGrath, Deepti Sharma, Rajeshwari Gayakwad, Sophie Ecclestone, S Yashasri, Anjali Sarvani.
Players to watch out for
Grace Harris – The dynamic Australian batter lit up UP Warriorz’s campaign last season, bolstering the middle-order and rescuing them from numerous challenging scenarios. Accumulating 230 runs across five innings at an impressive strike rate of 165.46, her standout performance was an unbeaten 72 against Gujarat Giants, an innings that secured the team’s playoff berth.
She was also the third-highest run-scorer in the Women’s Big Bash League (WBBL) 2023, with 501 runs in 17 matches at an average of 31.31 and a strike rate of 165.89. She scored a century and two fifties in the tournament.
The 30-year-old right-hand batter has played a total of 27 T20Is for Australia, scoring 408 runs at an average of 21.47 and a strike rate of 167.21. Harris loves to go for the big shots and will get plenty of opportunity to do that at the batting friendly M Chinnaswamy Stadium, where the first half of the WPL 2024 will be held.
Vrinda Dinesh – Vrinda Dinesh, a 22-year-old rising star in Indian cricket, emerged as one of the most sought-after players in this year’s auction, commanding a hefty price tag of Rs 1.3 Crore. Her stellar displays in the Senior Women’s T20 Trophy this season, amassing 211 runs at a remarkable strike rate of 154, earned her this lucrative contract. Additionally, her outstanding domestic form continued in the Under-23 T20 Trophy, where she accumulated 281 runs at a strike rate of 134.44. She also played a big role in Karnataka’s run up to the final of the BCCI – Senior Women’s One Day tournament, scoring 477 runs in 11 innings and emerging as the tournament’s fifth-highest run-scorer.
More recently, at the Emerging Team Cup in Hong Kong, she showcased her talent by scoring 36 runs in the final, propelling India A to victory against Bangladesh. This success led to her selection for India A’s home T20 series against England A.
Alyssa Healy – Last year, Alyssa Healy led from the front not just as a captain but also as batter. With 253 runs in nine games, featuring two half-centuries in, she stands as the cornerstone of the batting lineup. One of the most aggressive batters who can take the best of bowlers to the cleaners, Healy has played 153 T20 internationals for Australia, amassing 2795 runs at an average of 24.51 and a strike rate of almost 130.
At the WBBL over the years, Healy has played 114 matches, scoring 2986 runs at a strike rate of 134.81. She is also a brilliant fielder.
Sophie Ecclestone
Sophie Ecclestone, who will be spearheading the spin attack for UPW, picked up 16 wickets in nine games last year, coupled with an economy rate of 6.62.
The left-armer picked up 20 wickets at 17.90 for the Sydney Sixers in WBBL 2022, helping the team reach the final. She did not play WBBL 2023 after sustaining an injury in the Women’s Hundred tournament.
The 24-year-old England bowler has played 76 T20 internationals in total, picking up 109 wickets while maintaining an impressive economy of 5.86.
Kiran Navgire
Another Indian player to watch out for it Kiran Navgire, who scored 155 runs in eight innings last season. A reliable middle order batter, Navgire is the only Indian (male or female) to score over 150 in a T20 match.
UP Warriorz full schedule for WPL 2024
Feb 24: Royal Challengers Bangalore vs UP Warriorz At M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bangalore at 7.30 PM IST
Feb 26: UP Warriorz vs Delhi Capitals At M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bangalore at 7.30 PM IST
Feb 28: Mumbai Indians vs UP Warriorz At M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bangalore at 7.30 PM IST
Mar 1: UP Warriorz vs Gujarat Giants At M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bangalore at 7.30 PM IST
Mar 4: UP Warriorz vs Royal Challengers Bangalore At M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bangalore at 7.30 PM IST
Mar 7: UP Warriorz vs Mumbai Indians At Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi at 7.30 PM IST
Mar 8: Delhi Capitals vs UP Warriorz At Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi at 7.30 PM IST
Mar 11: Gujarat Giants vs UP Warriorz At Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi at 7.30 PM IST
