In their second match of Women’s Premier League (WPL) 2025, February 19, UP Warriorz faced Delhi Capitals. Sent in to bat by Meg Lanning, the Warriorz started strong with a quick-fire 50 by Indian opener Kiran Navgire, who struck at 188.88, building a partnership with youngster Vrinda Dinesh.
However, the scoring rate tapered off as the Warriorz started losing wickets in a cluster, with captain Deepti Sharma (7) and the two Australians – Tahlia McGrath (1) and Grace Harris (12) – dismissed cheaply, failing to post a total of around 200 which initially looked possible.
Debutant Chinelle Henry was their saving grace. The West Indian came in and smashed 33* (15), striking at a whopping rate of 220.00 as she took down Indian veteran Shikha Pandey, scoring 23 runs in one over. Henry truly made her mark in the WPL, making use of the opportunity—one that she had previously expressed gratitude for.
“This is a really huge, huge opportunity for me,” Henry told ESPNcricinfo’s Powerplay podcast. “My only other franchise league would’ve been the CPL, so to be a part of one of the biggest franchises around in female cricket in the WPL is a really big thing for my career going forward… this year is definitely kind of like a test run, a trial run, for me,” she said as she expressed her wish to become a permanent part of the set-up.
Henry also spoke about the shoes she has to fill, “Coming in has a replacement, that’s a huge set of responsibilities on me, huge shoes to fill. The atmosphere playing along with some of the best in the world from their respective regions is going to be huge. There will be a lot of learning this year and I’m hoping that I can actually go there and deliver on the field when called upon, because that’s the reason why I’m here. Obviously, they saw something.
“Healy, unfortunately, the team lost to injury, and to be that replacement is a huge honour,” she said as she highlighted how difficult it would be to fill captain Healy’s shoes.
Ending her innings with 3 sixes in an over and powering the Warriorz to 166, Henry showcased her worthiness of being chosen as a replacement for Alyssa Healy. As the Warriorz look to redeem themselves after losing their first match of the season, the Capitals also look to return to winning ways.
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