WPL 2024: Mumbai Indians strongest predicted playing XI against Delhi Capitals

The second edition of the Women's Premier League (WPL 2024) begins on Friday, February 23. The tournament's first match will face last year's finalists, Delhi Capitals, against the defending champions, Mumbai Indians. The match will be held at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru.

Harmanpreet Kaur will lead the Mumbai side in WPL 2024. The Indians had been ruthless in the previous edition of the tournament and Harmanpreet Kaur would want to continue that this season as well. They had a very good WPL 2024 auction as well with Shabnim Ismail joining the franchise. 

With that in consideration, let’s have a look at the Mumbai Indians women’s strongest predicted playing XI for the WPL 2024 opener.

Here is the strongest predicated Mumbai Indians women's lineup:

Openers: Yastika Bhatia (WK), Hayley Matthews

Yastika Bhatia will be the wicketkeeper and opener for the Mumbai Indians in the WPL 2024 season. Last season, the left-handed batter scored 214 runs in ten games. She was one of the hitters who gave a fantastic performance.

Hayley Matthews will be another starter for the team. Last year, she began the innings in ten games and scored 271 runs, with an average of 30.11. She also scored a half-century, an unbeaten 77 in a game. She also had a decent run in the recent Women’s Big Bash League (WBBL 2023-24 season). 

Middle Order: Nat Sciver-Brunt, Harmanpreet Kaur, Amanjot Kaur

Nat Sciver-Brunt, an England all-rounder, is perhaps the most prized asset in women's cricket, and the Mumbai Indians have enjoyed the benefits of signing her. Natalie Sciver-Brunt earned the WPL 2023 tournament's Most Valuable Player (MVP). She was the season's second-leading run-getter, with 332 runs at an average of 66 and a strike rate of 140, with three fifties including a knock of 60 in the WPL final. With the ball, the right-arm seamer took ten wickets at an economy rate of 7.12.

Harmanpreet Kaur led the Mumbai Indians well last season, all the way to the WPL 2023 title. In the previous WPL edition, she made 281 runs from nine innings at a strike rate of 135 while averaging 40, including three half-centuries. However, in the recent T20I series at home against Australia, Harmanpreet was in bad form, where she made single digits in six innings across three formats.

Amanjot Kaur appears as a bright all-rounder who has not only demonstrated her talent but has also dazzled on the international scene with her cricketing abilities. The 24-year-old all-rounder has played 12 T20Is for India and has shown great potential.

All-rounders: Amelia Kerr, Pooja Vastrakar, Jintimani Kalita

Amelia Kerr of New Zealand is a key member of the Indians unit. She mustered 149 runs at a 37.25 average last season with a strike rate of 133. With the ball, Kerr took 15 scalps last season. She is also coming off a brilliant performance in the Super Smash and MI will depend on her in both aspects of the game. 

Pooja Vastrakar stands out as India's most influential all-rounder, rewriting the narrative with a great blend of power-hitting ability and a propensity for vital wicket-taking. Last season, the right-handed batter hit 71 runs in four innings with a strike rate of 144 or more. She also took two wickets while bowling in three games.

Jintimani Kalita is another pace-bowling all-rounder who could help Mumbai continue its dominance in the Women’s Premier League. She also played four matches for the team last season picking up one wicket, hitting unbeaten 3 and 2 in those games.

Bowlers: Saika Ishaque, Issy Wong, Fatima Jaffer

Saika Ishaque became the second-highest wicket-taker in the previous WPL season, making an unforgettable impression on the competition. This also helped her make her India Women’s team debut. The left-arm spinner got 15 wickets in ten games, at a stunning economy of seven and a bowling average of 16.26.

Issy Wong will be the key bowler for Mumbai Indians in WPL 2023. She bagged 15 wickets last season and emerged as a key bowler for Mumbai in the death overs. Wong also can run through opposition batting and also control the run flow when needed. 

Fatima Jaffer is the niece of former India opener and Mumbai domestic legend, Wasim Jaffer, and sister of Armaan Jaffer. She is unique as Jaffer possesses the ability to bowl with both the right hand and the left hand and has very good control over both.  

Here is the strongest MI women predicted playing XI:

MI XI - Yastika Bhatia (WK), Hayley Mathews, Nat Sciver-Brunt, Harmanpreet Kaur (C), Amanjot Kaur, Amelia Kerr, Pooja Vastrakar, Jintimani Kalita, Saika Ishaque, Issy Wong, Fatima Jaffer