The dismissal of Sri Lankan all-rounder Chamari Athapaththu proved to be the turning point as Royal Challengers Bangalore Women defeated UP Warriorz Women by 23 runs. It was a controversy-hampered Women's Premier League encounter on March 4 in Bengaluru.
UP Warriorz were well on course in their chase of 199, with openers Alyssa Healy and Kiran Navgire getting them off to a flying start. However, the dismissal of Athapaththu in controversial circumstances put the brakes on their innings, ultimately leaving them short of the target.
At 63/2 in the 7th over, Athapaththu was adjudged leg-before wicket off Georgia Wareham's delivery, despite appearing to get an inside edge. UP Warriorz captain Healy was visibly perplexed by the decision, which came after RCB reviewed the not-out call. Hawk-Eye suggested the ball was going on to hit the stumps after spinning sharply.
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'We are pretty frustrated about' - Jon Lewis
UP Warriorz coach Jon Lewis didn't hold back his disappointment about the decision during the post-match press conference.
"You watch the ball with the naked eye, and you think it might pitch in line, just maybe, Then you look at the ball rotating, and well, it's rotating like a legspinner. There are not many legspinners that go towards that [other] side. It was a fascinating dismissal and a massive turning point for us in that game," he said.
The left-right combination of Athapaththu and Healy was keeping RCB at bay. Athapaththu's dismissal for 8 off 8 balls broke that partnership and allowed RCB to regain control.
"Chamari is an amazing player and you saw how difficult it was when a left-hander and a right-hander were batting together, of the quality of Smriti [Mandhana] and Ellyse Perry. And they can access the short side of the ground. That was one of the reasons why we picked Chamari, to be able to access the short side of the ground for both the right and the left-hander. So to lose her in that way was incredibly frustrating," he added.
"I don't know the ins and outs of hawk-eye and the technology and how it works. But it was certainly an interesting passage of play and something that we are pretty frustrated about," concluded Lewis.
Despite a late flourish from Deepti Sharma (33 off 22) and Poonam Khemnar (31 off 24), UP Warriorz fell short, finishing on 175/8.
Also read: RCB bid farewell to M Chinnaswamy with thumping victory over UP Warriorz
The controversy overshadowed fiery knocks from Smriti Mandhana (80 off 50) and Ellyse Perry (58 off 37) that propelled RCB to 198/3. With the win, RCB jumped to third on the table with three wins from five games and six points. UP Warriorz on the other hand slipped to fourth with four points from two wins out of five games.
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