It was the time for the knockout stages of the Women’s Premier League (WPL) 2025, where the inaugural champions Mumbai Indians led by skipper Harmanpreet Kaur were up against Gujarat Giants led by skipper Ashleigh Gardner, who were making their maiden appearance in the playoff’s stages of the WPL.
The Giants suffered a massive blow, just five minutes before the toss, as the destructive Caribbean all-rounder, Deandra Dottin picked up an unfortunate injury which ruled her out of all the action in an all-important Eliminator.
Danielle Gibson steps in for the Giants marking the most unplanned WPL debut
Before the Women’s Premier League (WPL) 2025 Eliminator, Gujarat Giants faced a significant setback as star all-rounder Deandra Dottin was ruled out due to an injury sustained during warm-ups. This forced the team into a last-minute change, with England’s Danielle Gibson making her WPL debut in Dottin’s place. Captain Ashleigh Gardner described the situation as unfortunate yet saw an opportunity for Gibson to shine.
Dottin’s absence greatly impacted Gujarat’s chances, given her explosive batting and consistent bowling, which had contributed 142 runs at a strike rate of 154.34 and 9 wickets in the season. Gibson, meanwhile, brings her own set of skills, having performed well for England and in The Hundred, where she has shown prowess with both bat and ball. Despite Gibson’s potential, losing Dottin at such a critical moment could potentially hinder the Giants’ performance in a crucial game.
The home side, Mumbai Indians, made one change to their side, Parunika Sisodia made way for the return of Saika Ishaque in the starting 11.
Hayley Matthews–Nat Sciver-Brunt’s partnership powers Mumbai Indians to 213
The Giants missed a massive opportunity to send Hayley Matthews (5* off 7 balls) back to the pavilion, when a chance went down off the bowling of skipper Ashleigh Gardner in the 2nd over of the innings. The accidental WPL debutant Danielle Gibson finally broke the 26-run opening stand by removing the wicket-keeper batter Yastika Bhatia in the 5th over of the innings, after skipper Ashleigh Gardner won the toss and opted to bat first in the Eliminator at the Brabourne Stadium, in Mumbai.
Opening batter Hayley Matthews took full toll of the lifeline provided to her by forming a massive 133-run stand alongside Nat Sciver-Brunt for the 2nd wicket, taking them closer to the 160-run mark. Kashvee Gautam broke the stand by removing the dangerous Hayley Matthews (77 off 50 balls) in the 17th over of the innings. The Mumbai Indians batters continued to switch gears and take the attack to the Giants bowlers, and the home side ended up with the highest-ever total in the WPL Eliminator 213/4 in their quota of 20 overs.
Nat Sciver-Brunt notched up her 8th WPL half-century (77 off 41 balls), while skipper Harmanpreet Kaur’s fireworks (36 off 12 balls) propelled them to a massive total. Danielle Gibson (4-0-40-2), and Kashvee Gautam (4-0-30-1) were impressive with the ball and the only wicket-takers for the Gujarat Giants.
Hayley Matthews and Amelia Kerr bowl Mumbai Indians to their 2nd WPL final
Chasing a massive total of 214, the Giants came out with another new opening pair as the debutant Danielle Gibson partnered the wicket-keeper batter Beth Mooney at the crease. Shabnim Ismail inflicted a massive blow as she removed the wicket-keeper batter Beth Mooney in the 1st over of the run chase. Harleen Deol joined Danielle Gibson at the crease and the duo were rebuilding the innings with a crucial 28-run partnership for the 2nd wicket, before Harleen Deol was found short of her crease to provide the 2nd breakthrough for the Harmanpreet Kaur-led side.
Lack of substantial partnerships in the context of the run chase kept them behind the eight-ball throughout the run chase. A quick-fire 39-run partnership between Phoebe Litchfield and Danielle Gibson for the 4th wicket followed by another crucial 26-run stand for the 5th wicket between Phoebe Litchfield and Bharti Fulmali kept the Giants’ hopes alive in the run chase.
The Ashleigh Gardner-led side eventually folded for 166, with four balls to spare, falling 47 runs short of the target. Danielle Gibson (34 off 24 balls), Phoebe Litchfield (31 off 20 balls), Bharti Fulmali (30 off 20 balls), Simran Shaikh (17 off 8 balls), Tanuja Kanwer (16 off 12 balls) chipped in with handy contributions with the bat for Gujarat Giants. Hayley Matthews (3.2-0-31-3), and Amelia Kerr (4-0-28-2) were the stand-out performers with the ball for Mumbai Indians, while Nat Sciver-Brunt (4-0-31-1), and Shabnim Ismail (4-0-35-1) played their part with the ball for their side.
Hayley Matthews was awarded the Player of the Match for her blockbuster all-round show, leaving a sensational impact with an innings of 77 (50 balls) with the bat, and capping off a dream day in the field with a brilliant spell (3.2-0-31-3) in her spell. She played an instrumental role as Mumbai Indians progressed to the 2nd appearance in the WPL Final in three seasons so far. 15th March 2025 (Saturday) will mark a repeat fixture of the title clash in the inaugural edition in 2023, when Harmanpreet Kaur’s Mumbai Indians will yet again lock horns with Meg Lanning’s Delhi Capitals at the Brabourne Stadium in Mumbai, from 7:30 PM IST.
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