WPL 2023: Top 5 bowling performances from first week

The first week of the inaugural season of the Women’s Premier League (WPL) has been done and dusted. After seven days of exhilarating cricket, Mumbai Indians are placed at the top of the standings, having won all their three games played thus far while Royal Challengers Bangalore are struggling at the bottom of the WPL points table with no wins in four matches. In the first week of the marquee tournament, many players have been at their best and have left the cricket fraternity in awe of their performances. Among them, there have been certain bowlers who have taken the T20 carnival by storm with their exploits on the cricket field. Here are the top 5 best bowling performances from the first week: 5. Hayley Matthews vs Royal Challengers Bangalore (4-0-28-3) Mumbai Indians locked horns with Royal Challengers Bangalore in the fourth match of WPL 2023. The Bangalore franchise won the toss and elected to bat and got a brisk start, scoring 35 for no loss in the Powerplay. However, Saika Ishaque dented their progress by picking two quick wickets in the fifth over. Hayley Matthews also displayed her class and bowled a sensational sixth over and got rid of RCB skipper Smriti Mandhana and Heather Knight in back-to-back deliveries to put the opposition in a precarious situation at 43 for 4. Matthews also dismissed Richa Ghosh in the 14th over to ensure Bangalore did not finish their innings on a high. The West Indies all-rounder finished the innings with superb figures of 4-0-28-3. Eventually, RCB were bowled out for 155 in 18.4 overs. Mumbai, in response, chased the target inside 15 overs itself with nine wickets in hand. Matthews was the star with the bat too, smashing an unbeaten 77 off 38. 4. Saika Ishaque vs Delhi Capitals (3-0-13-3) Mumbai Indians and Delhi Capitals took center stage in the seventh match of the T20 extravaganza. DC won the toss and skipper Meg Lanning opted to have a bat. The Delhi side entered the contest in phenomenal form, having won their previous two encounters but Saika Ishaque was up for the challenge. Ishaque set the tone with the ball, bagging the wicket of Shafali Verma in the second over. And when the fourth wicket stand between Lanning and Jemimah Rodrigues started looking dangerous, MI skipper Harmanpreet Kaur handed the ball to Saika and the 27-year-old delivered the goods again, dismissing both the set-batters in the 13th over to leave DC in a spot of bother at 84 for 5. Ultimately, Delhi Capitals were bundled out for 105 runs in 18 overs. The Mumbai franchise comfortably hunted down the total in 15 overs with eight wickets in hand as Ishaque was adjudged the Player of the Match for registering impeccable figures of 3-0-13-3. 3. Saika Ishaque vs Gujarat Giants (3.1-1-11-4) Mumbai Indians clashed against Gujarat Giants in the inaugural match of the ongoing edition of the Women’s Premier League. Gujarat won the toss and decided to put MI into bat. Mumbai posted a daunting total of 207 runs on the board, with Harmanpreet Kaur (65 runs off 30 deliveries) top-scoring. After Mumbai’s batters set the stage ablaze with their performances, the bowlers came to the party. Saika Ishaque led the team charge with the ball and picked up an exceptional four-wicket haul, which includes a massive wicket of the Australian all-rounder Annabel Sutherland. In the end, Gujarat were sent packing for 64 runs in 15.1 overs and Mumbai registered a comprehensive win over Beth Mooney & Co. by 143 runs. Saika finished the game with magnificent figures of 3.1-1-11-4. 2. Kim Garth vs UP Warrioz (4-0-36-5) Gujarat Giants faced UP Warriorz in the third match of the 2023 season of WPL. After electing to bat first, the Gujarat franchise posted a competitive total of 169 runs on the board. Harleen Deol was the top scorer for the Giants, smashing 46 runs off 32 deliveries while Sophie Ecclestone and Deepti Sharma were sensational with the ball for UP, bagging two wickets each. Defending 170, ace all-rounder Kim Garth made the ball talk and ripped through UP’s batting line-up. He bowled a remarkable third over, getting rid of Alyssa Healy, Shweta Sehrawat and Tahila McGrath inside six deliveries to leave the Warriorz reeling at 20 for 3. UP recovered from the perilous situation, courtesy of the sensational half-century from Kiran Navgire. However, Garth got rid of her and also Simran Shaikh in the 13th over to bring Gujarat back into a superior position. But Garth’s valiant effort went in vain as Grace Harris hammered 59* runs off 26 balls to take Healy & Co. across the line. 1. Tara Norris vs Royal Challengers Bangalore (4-0-29-5) Delhi Capitals battled it out against Royal Challengers Bangalore in the second match of the Women’s Premier League 2023. RCB won the toss and opted to field first. Delhi posted a mammoth total of 223, riding on sublime half-centuries from Meg Lanning and Shafali Verma. Chasing 224, Smriti Mandhana and Sophie Devine provided RCB with a strong start and they scored 41 runs in four overs. However, Alica Capsey sent both the openers back in the next couple of overs to dent the opposition’s progress. Post Capsey’s twin strikes, Tara Norris put up an exhibition of some sensational bowling to completely dismantle RCB. On the batting-friendly surface at the Brabourne Stadium where most bowlers were taken to the cleaners, Norris breathed fire and bagged an astonishing five-wicket haul. She registered brilliant figures of 4-0-29-5 and courtesy of her marvellous bowling, RCB could only score 163 runs in 20 overs. The left-arm pacer was adjudged as the Player of the Match for her fantastic performance. For a better experience: Download the CricTracker app from the IOS App Store and Google Play Store

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WPL 2023: Top 5 bowling performances from first week

Certain bowlers took WPL 2023 by storm with their exploits on the cricket field in the first week of the tournament.

3. Saika Ishaque vs Gujarat Giants (3.1-1-11-4)

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