WPL 2023: Team-wise probable opening combination

The player auction for the inaugural season of the Women's Premier League was wrapped up on February 13. The marquee event in Mumbai created a lot of buzz as T20 stars from around the world went under the hammer. A total of 449 players auditioned at the WPL 2023 auction but only 87 of them were able to attract buyers. Each team has packed themselves with top-quality players and looks quite formidable on paper. However, it will be interesting to see which players are chosen to start the proceedings with the bat for their receptive franchises. Here is the team-wise probable opening combination for WPL 2023: 5. Mumbai Indians - Hayley Matthews and Yastika Bhatia Hayley Matthews has been a proven performer in the international arena. She has featured in 82 T20Is and scored 1581 runs at a strike rate of 104.15. The 24-year-old has taken the opposition’s bowlers to the cleaners and provided the West Indies team with brisk starts on a consistent basis. Matthews is an experienced customer and thus, Mumbai are likely to start with the West Indies all-rounder in the opening slot. Given the composition of the side, the team management is likely to draft in their premier wicketkeeper, Yastika Bhatia as Hayley's opening partner. Yastika has been in and around the Indian white-ball set-up in the last couple of years. She has played some superb knocks for the Women in Blue at the top of the order and has the potential to thrive in WPL 2023. Moreover, The 22-year-old aced the opener's role in the Senior Women's T20 Challenger Trophy 2022, notching up 203 runs in four games at a strike rate of 134.43. The southpaw would look to put up a show with the bat in the inaugural season of the marquee tournament. Click here to know more about the latest news and updates of WPL Schedule 2023, WPL Squad and WPL Points table. 4. Delhi Capitals - Shafali Verma and Jemimah Rodrigues Shafali Verma has set the international arena on fire from the time she donned the national colours. The youngster has played an aggressive style of cricket and put the opposition under the pump with her dazzling strokes. She has featured in 54 T20Is and scored 1300 runs at a strike rate of 133.47. Though Shafali has been explosive, the flamboyant batter has lacked consistency at times. Thus, Delhi would want a solid anchor to partner her at the top. Therefore, the team management could look at someone like Jemimah Rodrigues for the role. Rodrigues has been a consistent performer for India in the shortest format. She has featured in 78 T20Is and scored 1642 runs at a strike rate of 112.77. In the international arena, the 22-year-old has held the innings together and shepherded the innings beautifully. Therefore, she could be a perfect foil for Shafali in the opening slot. 3. UP Warriorz - Alyssa Healy and Shweta Sehrawat Alyssa Healy is a giant of a player in world cricket. She has tormented bowlers with her marauding bat and amassed truckloads of runs across formats. The wicketkeeper-batter has featured in 139 T20Is and notched up 2446 runs at a strike rate of 127.72. Healy’s batting prowess is second to none and therefore, it is a no-brainer that UP Warriorz will pick her for the opener’s role. The other name that could be a potential partner the Australian batter at the top could be Shweta Sehrawat. Sehrawat took the Women's Under-19 T20 World Cup 2023 by storm with her magnificent performances. She hammered 297 runs in seven matches at a strike rate of 139.43. The youngster is in a rich vein of form and could light up WPL 2023 with her batting displays. 2. Gujarat Giants - Beth Mooney and Sabbhineni Meghana Beth Mooney is a ferocious striker of the cricket ball and has dismantled top-quality attacks for fun with her flamboyant stroke play. The ace batter has made 81 appearances for her national side in the T20 format and smashed 2222 runs at a strike rate of 123.71. Gujarat Giants went hammer and tongs to sign Mooney at the WPL 2023 auction and acquired her services for INR 2 crore. The 29-year-old has been an established opener and thus, she is likely to start the proceedings with the bat for the Gujarat franchise. Sabbhineni Meghana could be the probable candidate to partner Mooney in the opening slot. Meghana has taken the attack right from ball one and played some brilliant knocks for the Women in Blue at the top of the order. Thus, she could complement the Australian batter well. 1. Royal Challengers Bangalore - Smriti Mandhana and Sophie Devine Royal Challengers Bangalore have the likes of Smriti Mandhana and Sophie Devine in their arsenal. They are two of the finest opening batters going around in world cricket at the moment and thus, RCB’s opening combination appears quite intimidating. Mandhana has featured in 114 T20Is and aggregated 2713 runs at a strike rate of 123.26. She has taken the attack right from the get-go and provided the Women in Blue with crackling starts. The ace batter would look to do the same in WPL 2023 and make the high-profile competition her own. Coming to Devine, the New Zealand skipper is a marauder with the bat and has destroyed bowling attacks with her power-hitting might. She has featured in 119 T20Is and amassed 2969 runs at a strike rate of 121.53. The veteran batter would to bring her A-game into play in the coming WPL season.

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WPL 2023: Team-wise probable opening combination

Each franchise has some gun-opening batters at its disposal who could set the WPL 2023 on fire with their jaw-dropping performances

3. UP Warriorz - Alyssa Healy and Shweta Sehrawat

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