Inaugural Women’s Premier League (WPL) winners Mumbai Indians recorded their maiden win of the ongoing season with a dominating five-wicket victory over Gujarat Giants. A stingy bowling effort, led by West-Indies Hayley Matthews, restricted Gujarat to a below-par total of 120 in the first innings. Nat Sciver-Brunt led the chase with a well-paced 57, ensuring Mumbai got over the line without any hiccups.
Head coach of the losing team Michael Klinger answered the questions from the media panel.
Gujarat Giants failed to build partnerships in the middle overs and folded for 120. Defending a low score was always a tough job and the opposition breached the target with almost four overs to spare.
On being asked about the pitch conditions, “To be honest, it’s probably the best one we’ve had. I think the bounce was truer than the other ones you know, some of the other ones have kept it a little bit low, but they’re being nice batting wickets – all these wickets look pretty good.”
On a disappointing batting performance, “Probably our last couple of games haven’t quite gone to plan in the power play. Today losing four wickets, obviously and Gardner off the last ball in the power play – It’s always tough to come back from that. We do bat pretty deep though. So probably from the end of the power play, we did pretty well to get to 120. A couple of more lengthy partnerships could have been the difference to get us to 140-145 and I think we may have been in the game with that. But as you’ve seen here, it is difficult to defend anything really.
“I thought, our bowlers did a great job to give us a little bit of a sniff to win with about six or seven overs to go, but it’s always tough when you are defending a 120 score… We’ve asked our batters to play a positive style of cricket, and we’ve got some targets that we would like to get to. And we probably just attacked the wrong boundary… So, I think it was more not so much a mindset thing, probably just more tactical strategy where maybe they could try to access different areas or look to target the other side, the shorter side. So, in terms of their mindset, we’re happy with them playing aggressive cricket. maybe just tactically in strategy can be a little bit better next time.”
On playing in Vadodara, Klinger said that it would have been nice to secure another victory in front of the home crowd and head to Bangalore with two wins. However, they go there with one win, which is still an improvement from the same time last year. He emphasized that a couple of consecutive wins could place them among the top teams again. While there are lessons to take from the match, the team now has six days off to reset and prepare for Bangalore, which they are looking forward to.
On applauding Kashvee Gautam, the head coach said that he thought Kashvee performed well with the bat. They moved her up a spot, knowing how well she can play. He mentioned that in the nets and during the training camp, she had looked fantastic. He highlighted her ability to play in two ways—executing strong shots and hitting big, as demonstrated when she charged Shabnim Ismail, one of the world’s best bowlers, and hit her back over her head.
Klinger emphasized her immense talent and acknowledged that scoring 20 in her first game was a good start. However, he noted that one of her learnings would be to recognize opportunities to bat a little higher and aim for a 40-50 plus score. He expressed confidence that she would learn from the experience and improve with every game she plays.
“The whole time in Baroda has been fantastic. The crowd I thought tonight was probably the best one we’ve played in front of. I don’t know exactly how many, but even the top deck was pretty close to full. So, I think, playing in front of a home crowd – it was exciting for everyone, staff and players and, hopefully one day we get to come back here again.
“I think it’s a good idea to take the women’s game to as many cities in India, so it keeps growing. Obviously, there’s a bit more cost involved for the BCCI but to keep growing the women’s game and playing in different cities in India would be a great idea,” he added.
Player of the Match Hayley Matthews addressed the media questions after closure of play.
Mathews spun a web with a game-defining spell of 4/16 in the first innings. On her performance, she said, “I felt like it was definitely quite conducive to my bowling style and the way I go about it. I obviously just had some really strong plans.”
The Mumbai Indians have an upper hand over the Giants and have won all 5 games in the history of the tournament. On the team’s domination over the counterpart, the all-rounder said, “I guess as a team we probably just match up really well against them. I think every time we step on the part, we wanna be doing really well, and we’re fortunate to have a pretty good history against them and get another one over them.
“But at the same time, I think we’ve had to come up and play really good cricket every single time to do that. They’ve obviously got a really strong team and a team who competes really hard so I’m just pretty happy to get that win.”
Mathews acknowledged that Nat Sciver-Brunt is a class player and has been for quite some time. She noted that everyone performed well with the ball and that every single bowler played a massive role in restricting the opposition to 120. However, she emphasised that Sciver-Brunt was on a different level once again. She mentioned that she had a difficult season with the bat last year, so it was great to see her start strong in the first two matches. She expressed hope that more players would step up and support her in the upcoming games.
On bouncing back from a heartbreaking loss, “I think we were pretty hungry. We knew it was going to be a very important match, and I think the first game definitely did hurt how close it was, knowing that it was a situation where we could have been one from one. The same time we just wanted to stay really calm. We know the quality of players that we have within the dressing room and that on our day were capable of beating any team. We’re all just pretty happy that we got our plans correct today and we were also able to execute them really well.”
On getting a grand reception by the crowd in Vadodara, the all-rounder said, “Obviously had a good time doing here in that series, but, I think the crowd is nothing kind of matches up when it comes to the WPL and I love playing in front of big crowds and I feel like it adds so much energy and excitement to the tournaments and is going to continue to help it grow if people are around it and supporting again. And at the same time, I think the girls are putting on a show. We’re definitely playing a brand of cricket that will attract people and people want to see and at the same time will enjoy themselves doing.”
Mathews expressed her gratitude for being a part of Mumbai Indians since the first season. She acknowledged the franchise’s rich history and the presence of many legendary players over the years. She recalled feeling happy when she was picked in the first year and emphasized the strong bond the team has built over time.
She highlighted the familiarity within the squad, with many players remaining part of the franchise for the past three years, contributing to something truly special. Winning the tournament in the first year was a major highlight, and coming close last year added to their journey. While the first match of the ongoing season did not go as planned, she mentioned that the team has been enjoying themselves in Baroda. Looking ahead, she believes that if they keep winning, the enjoyment will only grow.
Loves all things female cricket
