WPL 2023: Top batting performances of first week

The first week of the maiden season of the Women’s Premier League (WPL) ended on Friday after the match between Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) and UP Warriorz (UPW), which went in the latter’s favour by 10 wickets. Eight matches were played in the competition's first week and Mumbai Indians (MI) finished on top of the table with three wins out of all three games. On the other hand, Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB), who played four matches in the firts week, continue to struggle to rack up points on the table. 

On March 4, the inaugural edition of the league kicked off with a contest between MI and Gujarat Giants. In the opening game, the former outclassed the latter in all departments and clinched a massive victory of 143 runs. In the game, the extraordinary efforts of MI batters emboldened the team’s bowlers to vanquish the opponents. After that game, WPL fans witnessed a lot of games wherein batters powered their teams with their solid knocks.

On that note, here are the top seven batting displays of the first week of the WPL

7. Grace Harris’s 59* vs Gujarat Giants 

After facing a humiliating defeat at the hands of MI in the opening game, GG were looking to open their account in the tournament with a win against UPW in the second match. Riding on Harleen Deol’s fine knock of 46 runs off 32 deliveries, GG posted a decent total of 169/6. Along with Deol, Dayalan Hemalatha also chipped in with her rapid knock of 21* that came off just 13 deliveries.

Chasing 170, UPW’s batting line-up was crushed as Kim Garth dismissed skipper Alyssa Healy, Shweta Sehrawat, and Tahlia McGrath in her second over. With the help of a 66-run stand between Kiran Navgire and Deepti Sharma, UPW stood at 86/4 after 12 overs. Things went worse for the Warriorz as Navgire departed after notching crucial 53 off 43. 

Just like the top-order batters, Simran Shaikh and Devika Vaidya also went back to the pavilion scoring 0 and 4 apiece. However, Australia’s Grace Harris, who enjoys the reputation of a hard-hitter, played some exquisite strokes and dominated GG bowlers. With her unbeaten 59 runs off 26 deliveries, the 29-year-old took her team home with three wickets in hand and a ball to spare. Harris also got the support of Sophie Ecclestone’s fierce innings (22* off 12 deliveries) to win the game.