WPL

Mumbai Indians were crowned champions at the inaugural Women's Premier League (WPL) after Nat Sciver-Brunt's unbeaten 60 secured their seven-wicket victory ...

Register for free to Reuters and know the full story Mumbai lost both the openers early but skipper Harmanpreet Kaur (37) and England all-rounder Sciver-Brunt combined in a 72-run stand to put their team on course for victory. Delhi captain Meg Lanning elected to bat after winning the toss and the Australia skipper top-scored for her side with 35 as the Capitals managed a modest 131-9.

The Mumbai Indians have been crowned champions of the inaugural Women's Premier League, with Harmanpreet Kaur's side defeating Meg Lanning's Delhi Capitals ...

“Mumbai deserved it, but I certainly can‘t fault the effort from our team. It feels like a dream – not only for me but for everyone here,” Kaur said after the triumph. However, Player of the Match Nat Sciver-Brunt plundered 60 not out, combining with Kaur for a 72-run partnership for the third wicket to prevent a middle-order collapse and put Mumbai within touching distance of the target. In response, Mumbai was in a spot of bother at 2-23 in the fourth over, with openers Yastika Bhatia and Matthews back in the sheds cheaply. New to Kayo? Watch Sri Lanka‘s Tour of New Zealand.

Amelia Kerr's Mumbai Indians' have won cricket's inaugural Women's Premier League (WPL) in India after a seven wicket victory against Delhi Capitals in ...

Kerr then helped steer her side to the WPL title with 14 runs after coming in at 95/3 after her captain Kaur was run out. Mumbai lost both the openers early but skipper Harmanpreet Kaur (37) and England all-rounder Nat Sciver-Brunt combined in a 72-run stand to put their team on course for victory. Delhi captain Meg Lanning elected to bat after winning the toss and the Australia skipper top-scored for her side with 35 as the Capitals managed a modest 131-9.

Cricket News: Mumbai Indians were crowned champions at the inaugural Women's Premier League (WPL). Captain Harmanpreet Kaur called it a "dream" after Mumbai ...

"We gave away too many in the final 3-4 overs, but it made the game interesting. "I'm continuously trying to improve and the conditions help my off-spin. "Glad I was able to stick it out when the pressure was on. "We would have loved to win but full credit to MI. "I think having a long batting line-up, we had to go there and express. "It has been a great experience, we were waiting for this for so many years.

India captain sees larger picture too, praising Radha and Pandey for their valiant fight to put up a testing total for the Capitals.

(I am a daughter of this age, I accept the battles)!" "I was actually very happy the way they were batting," Harmanpreet said eliciting laughter in the room. She was the first Indian to be signed up for the Women's Big Bash League in 2016, a move she termed "turning point in my life". "Shikha was bowling brilliantly throughout the tournament. I was actually happy when she hit those sixes at the end. As the captain of the Indian team, Harmanpreet was also pleased to see Radha Yadav and Shikha Pandey impress with the bat for the opposing team. "At this level it's about learning how to keep calm and handle the pressure and do well for the team," Harmanpreet said. Capitals were reduced to 79 for 9 in the 16th over when Radha and Pandey got together. With a home-grown league in place, she hoped the Indian domestic players benefit similarly. "I was waiting for such a moment for a long time… [winning runs to help Mumbai Indians win](https://www.espncricinfo.com/series/women-s-premier-league-2022-23-1348825/delhi-capitals-women-vs-mumbai-indians-women-final-1358950/full-scorecard)the inaugural WPL title was akin to a kindergarten kid running towards their parent after a day at school. Her run to the centre after Nat Sciver-Brunt hit the

Cricket News: Mumbai Indians were crowned champions at the inaugural Women's Premier League (WPL). Captain Harmanpreet Kaur called it a "dream" after Mumbai ...

"We gave away too many in the final 3-4 overs, but it made the game interesting. "I'm continuously trying to improve and the conditions help my off-spin. "Glad I was able to stick it out when the pressure was on. "We would have loved to win but full credit to MI. "I think having a long batting line-up, we had to go there and express. "It has been a great experience, we were waiting for this for so many years.

They did things differently from the beginning, but it all came together beautifully in the end, with the big-ticket stars taking centre stage.

Kerr's cameo was crucial in the end, the back-to-back boundaries in the 19th over off Jess Jonassen crucial to the end result. Perhaps the only thing that didn't work for them was the toss. As Harmanpreet and Sciver-Brunt added 72 - they took their time, it was tough going - the noise from the stands dipped and rose. It was relatively quiet as the two batters took their time to get going. It was true the other way too. She failed twice with the bat in the entir tournament. "I knew if I was there at the end, we'd be able to get over the line," she said afterwards - the confidence of a champion. At 79 for 9 with four overs to go, it looked like Capitals were down for the count. Amanjot Kaur, who has barely got a chance to bat or bowl but has shone on the field, chipped in with the crucial run-out of orange-cap-holder Lanning. But when it came down to it, Mumbai proved to be the clutch team that lifted themselves at the right time with the big guns firing. [Yastika Bhatia](https://www.espncricinfo.com/cricketers/yastika-bhatia-960715), among the 13 to cross the 200-run mark. Since the WPL was played in only one city, Mumbai, the already formidable team got an edge: a readymade, vocal, engaged fanbase that has spilt over from the IPL.

It hinted at how the tournament would shape into a high-scoring event. Though there was a dip in the scoring rates towards the end, the WPL ended with a run ...

The percentage of runs scored against spinners in the WPL off the sweep shots was 19.88, marginally higher than some of the T20 tournaments held in the past year. The average run rate across the first 11 matches was 8.58, while the last 11 had a run rate of 7.59, a clear drop in this metric by one run. 59.44% of runs were scored off the bat, and 62.08% of wickets picked by the bowlers in the tournament were by overseas players. The teams batting first, especially, struggled to get going in the second half of the competition, scoring at only 7.38, while the first 11 matches averaged 8.43 runs per over. Brabourne had a similar record - seven games won by chasing teams, including the two successful chases of 175-plus targets - 189 by Royal Challengers and 179 by UP Warriorz. They took 25 wickets across 80 overs bowled during the powerplay at the DY Patil Stadium, where the batters struck at 101.24 at an average of 19.52. Chasing teams won eight of the 11 games at this venue, while all three 180-plus totals were defended successfully. Though there was a dip in the scoring rates towards the end, the WPL ended with a run rate of 8.08, the highest for any women's T20 tournament of 20-plus matches, surpassing the 7.73 during the women's Hundred in 2022. Shreyanka Patil is the other Indian to top the bowling chart for her franchise, as her six wickets were the highest for the Royal Challengers. In fact, the leading run-scorer for all five teams was an overseas batter. The overseas players took up the prominent roles expectedly, as every team had no less than three overseas players in their top six - 3502 of the 3716 runs scored by the overseas players came when batting in the top six. The 200-run mark was breached four times in the tournament across the 22 matches.

After Mumbai Indians claimed the first ever WPL title, take a look at how the 15-strong Aussies contingent fared in the tournament.

P 9 Wkts 9 But she might be angling for a promotion in the Aussie XI after making an impact with bat in hand, including a 19-ball 30 not out against Delhi. She did not quite replicate the twin 70-plus scores she hit against India in Mumbai in December, but she started the season with a 19-ball 31 and later produced back-to-back half-centuries. SR 48.5 SR 123

Australia captain Meg Lanning has forecast the Women's Premier League (WPL) will end her nation's dominance of women's...

"As an Australian team we think it is important the global game is growing. I want to be part of it for a little bit longer." It is not just about us winning all the time, we want to win all the time - there's no doubt about that - but there is more at play that just that." "We play the game because we love it and we want to keep improving it and carry on growing the game." "One of the things we talk about a lot in the Australian team is trying to have an impact on the global stage. "It is important the payments continue to grow - that investment is really important, but as players we think there is a lot more to it than that," Lanning says.

Meg Lanning leads one of the most dominant teams in international sport – the Australian women's cricket team. But after playing in the inaugural season of ...

At present, the player pool – globally and in India – may not support more teams, even if this tournament has tempted new investors. We want to win all the time. But as players we think there is a lot more to it than that,” Lanning said. There are currently five franchises (the IPL started with eight and now has 10). I want to be part of it for a little bit longer.” “As an Australian team we think it is important the global game is growing.

Meg Lanning and Jess Jonassen were brilliant throughout the inaugural WPL, but couldn't get the job done in the final. Read more here.

Meg Lanning's Midas touch as cricket's captain supreme has deserted her in Mumbai as her Delhi Capitals team came up just short in an exciting final of the ...

It feels like a dream – not only for me but for everyone here,” she said. “Mumbai deserved it but I certainly can’t fault the effort from our team. And in a competition which has featured so many standout performances by Australians, there was some irony in the fact that the only team that didn’t use a single Aussie in the tournament ended up winning.