UPW vs GG, WPL 2025 Highlights: Gujarat Giants beats UP Warriorz by 81 runs in Lucknow opener
UPW vs GG, WPL 2025 Highlights: Gujarat Giants beats UP Warriorz by 81 runs in Lucknow opener
Credits: SANDEEP SAXENA/The Hindu
OUT! Ecclestone is cleaned up by Tanuja. Floated up, Ecclestone looks to swing at it, but misses and the ball crashes on to her stumps.
Sophie Ecclestone b Kanwar 14 (10)
GG win by 81 runs!!
Kashvee back. FOUR! Uma finds the gap between cover and mid off. OUT! Can’t beat the fielder at backward point.
Uma Chetry c Kanwar b Gautam 17 (22)
Gouher Sultana walks in and has to walk back immediately! Length ball, shaping back from outside off, gets the slightest edge to Mooney behind.
Gouher Sultana c †Mooney b Gautam 0 (1)
Cannot take a hat-trick. Kranti Goud defends the ball well.
Credits: SANDEEP SAXENA/The Hindu
SIX! Ecclestone clears the deep mid wicket fence on the longest side of the field with ease. 100 up for UPW. 10 runs off the over and Priya completes a wicket-less spell.
Timout.
Dottin returns. Ecclestone whips it past mid off to the deep but Gardner does well to keep it to two. A few more singles and six runs coming off it.
Tanuja bowls her third. A couple of singles and OUT! Litchfield takes a third catch! Tossed up delivery, Henry couldn’t get under it enough and finds the deep mid wicket fielder.
Chinelle Henry c Litchfield b Kanwar 28 (14)
Sophie Ecclestone comes in. Four runs and a wicket off the over.
Meghna back. FOUR! Good length ball, Henry drops it off mid off region. A couple of singles and FOUR again! This time, powered straight down the ground. SIX! Over the bowler’s head into the stands.
Gardner returns. FOUR! Cuts between cover and backward point. Takes a quick single but a better aimed throw by Gardner could have removed Uma at the striker’s end. Six runs off the over.
Priya bowls her third. Going down leg and Mooney seems interested with a caught-behind or lbw? Unsure but they play on. Width on offer, Uma slaps it down to long off for a single. Chinelle Henry on strike. First ball, SIX! Gets enough height on it to beat long on. Doesn’t let Henry free up her hands after that. Single to end the over.
Tanuja returns. Around the wicket to both right-handed batters. Going down leg, Harris guides it fine past short fine leg for a FOUR! Called four wides. Harris got down on one knee to her right but didn’t connect with the ball and was struck on the pads. Umpire raises the finger and that’s another wicket! Harris reviews. To no avail.
Grace Harris lbw b Kanwar 25 (30)
Priya continues. Boundaries drying up for UPW, so are the singles. Harris ries to make space but Priya does not give in. Three singles.
Timeout.
Skipper Gardner bowls her first. Harris denied a boundary wide of deep square leg after Dottin grabbed the ball before the fence and threw it back. OUT! Skied high by Shweta and Litchifield came in from deep mid wicket to complete a clean catch.
Shweta Sehrawat c Litchfield b Gardner 5 (8)
Uma Chetry comes in. Three runs and a wicket off the over.
Priya Mishra into the attack. Starts with a googly, on a length outside off, Shweta slapped the ball through cover for two. Harris absolutely blinded by Priya’s mystery deliveries, finally manages a single off the legbreak ball. Four runs off the over.
Credits: SANDEEP SAXENA/The Hindu
Tanuka Kanwer with the ball. Full, on the stumps, worked away to deep mid wicket for a single. Shweta Sehrawat on strike. Shaky start for Shweta, inside edge comes back on the pads. Gets off the mark on the next with a single. Three runs off the over.
Meghna Singh into the attack. Deepti gets a coupe through point. A single on the next and asks for some water before the match resumes. FOUR! Full on leg, flicked behind short fine leg by Harris. Another double, this time through deep mid wicket. OUT! Deepti, what have you done?!Length ball, wide, shaping back in, Deepti gets an edge and Mooney takes an easy catch.
Deepti Sharma c †Mooney b Meghna Singh 6 (9)
OUT! Kashvee strikes and Vrinda has to go! She looked to scoop it back but the ball blazed past her and knocked the middle stump. Kashvee bowled fuller and got plenty of swing. UPW in big trouble!
Dinesh Vrinda b Gautam 1 (3)
Skipper Deepti Sharma in. Just a single coming off the over.
DOttin continues. FOUR! Short and angling down, pulled away from short fine leg. Harris will look to make most of the reprieve. Vrinda gets off the mark with a single to deep cover. Six coming off it.
Kashvee Gautam from the other end. Grace Harris hit plumb on the pads and umpire has given out! Swinging too much and the review shows it was missing the stumps. FOUR! Kashvee getting plenty of movement, Harris places it between short fine leg and square leg. Five runs off the over.
Kiran Navgire and Grace Harris are set to start the chase. Deandra Dottin with the ball. Harris off the mark with a single. OUT! On a length outside off, moves away a bit and Kiran edges it to Litchfield at first slip. The Giants strike first!
Kiran Navgire c Litchfield b Dottin 0 (1)
Debutant Georgia Voll in at 3. OUT! VOLL IS OUT FOR A DUCK! Pitched short and ball glides down, shaping away from the bat and hitting the stumos. UPW in big trouble.
Georgia Voll b Dottin 0 (3)
Credits: SANDEEP SAXENA/The Hindu
Ecclestone to bowl the final over. A couple of singles and FOUR! Mooney goes straight down again. Takes a single and she’s at 96. Bharti Fulmali cannot hand Mooney the strike meaning she cannot get to a hundred. A final single and Mooney has led GG to 186.
Deepti to bowl out. Worked towards deep backward square leg for two runs. FOUR! Litchfield shuffles and reverse slog sweep to deep mid wicket. Tries it again but gets a top edge. Backward point completes the catch.
Phoebe Litchfield c Sehrawat b Sharma 8 (6)
Ecclestone to Dottin. SIX! The first of the innings. Fuller on off, straight over the bowler. Dtton survives again! Uma couldn’t collect the ball to complete a stumping. FOUR! Slices past point. Struck on the pads and UPW reviews it. OUT!
Deandra Dottin lbw b Ecclestone 17 (8)
Phoebe Litchfield is the new batter. Off the mark with a single.
Kranti to bowl out. FOUR! Length ball, outside off, Gardner goes over deep extra cover. OUT! Another length ball, pitched wide of off, Garner holes out to Ecclestone at cover.
Ashleigh Gardner c Ecclestone b Goud 11 (10)
Denadra Dottin comes in. FOUR! One bounce to the ropes. Dropped! A failed scoop shot and Gouher Sultana can’t hold on to the ball at short fine leg.
Harris returns. FOUR! Mooney starts with a boundary straight down the ground. Given out! Mooney mistimes and is hit on the pads that may have taken her gloves on the way to the keeper. She instantly reviews it but turns out, it was a no ball. Goes down the ground again and that’s FOUR! Beats a diving long on fielder who ran plenty to long off side.
Timeout.
Deepti to Mooney. FOUR! Mooney won’t go wrong with the shot straight down, adds another boundary to her list. Mooney now in her 70s. Gardner flicks away to deep square leg for a single. !0 runs coming off the over.
Kranti returns. Quick running between the wicket and that’s two off the first ball. FOUR! And FOUR again! Mooney scoops behind, just over short fine leg. Just beats Ecclestone at mid off , who got a hand to it. And FOUR again! Slices it behind point. 16 runs off the over.
Ecclestone back. OUT! Harleen cannot score a fifty! Tried to make space but ended up revealing her stumps. Ball was on target and the middle stump is struck.
Harleen Deol b Ecclestone 45 (32)
Ashleigh Gardner in. A couple of singles to end the over.
Deepti returns. Mooney in search for gaps and finally finds one. FOUR! And a fitting way to bring up her fifty! Skips down the track and pounds it over covers. Also, the 100-run stand between the two has been completed.
Henry to bowl out. FOUR! Short, on the stumps, Mooney goes straight behind the bowler. Harleen on strike now and FOUR! Flicked away past backward square leg. FOUR more to end the over. Mooney adds another, once again straight down the ground. 14 runs.
Harris back. FOUR! Short and wide, Harleen stays back in her crease and cuts through point. A couple of dots and couple of singles off the over.
Henry returns. FOUR! Shorter, pulled to deep mid wicket. Fielders running in from either side end up pushing the ball over the ropes. THAT’S GOT TO HURT! Hit right back at Henry, who takes a blow on her shin. They run two and looks like Henry is fit to continue. Completes the over but she still looks in pain. 10 runs off the over.
Sophie Ecclestone into the attack. Early call from Mooney and they run a quick two to hand Harleen strike again. Full on middle, past the non-striker for another single. FOUR! Mooney dances down the track and goes over the bowler to long on fence. 10 runs.
Timeout.
Kranti continues. FOUR! Full and outside off, placed to perfection between mid off and cover. Too high for Harleen, called wide. FOUR! Driven hard and straight by the bowler, to the left of Kranti and runs away to the ropes. 13 runs.
Harris returns. FOUR! Mooney skips down the track and slams it over the bowler. Harleen sweeps it towards deep mid wicket. A fumple on Karnati’s part gives GG another run. Ten coming off the over.
Kranti Goud replcaes Henry. Short fine leg firmly in place for Mooney. No problem, she targets the other side. FOUR wide past short third. Strong start for Kranti, five dots.
Deepti Sharma into the attack. A couple of singles taken and FOUR! Mooney drives through covers for her first boundary. FOUR more! Going down leg, Mooney nudges it behind and short fine leg can’t get there. GG starting to climb back.
Henry continues. On leg stump line, hits the pad for one leg bye. FOUR! Better way to end the dot-ball infested over. Sophie Ecclestone tried to time her dive to her left at mid off but is beaten by Harleen’s drive.
Grace Harris from the other end. Spin brought in only the second over. Mooney off with a single. Harleen Deol is on strike. Off the mark with a single to the leg side. FOUR! Harleen spots the gap at backward square leg and launches the ball away. GG will need more of that.
Beth Mooney and Dayalan Hemalatha to open for the Giants. Chinelle Henry with the new ball. Starts with a fuller ball, outside off that Mooney misses. Gets it straighter next time, Mooney defends it to the on side. Whisks the ball to mid on for a single. Hemalatha on strike. Good length, shaping just away, Hemalatha gets two runs beating cover point. OUT! The Warriorz strike first! Swinging away from the batter. She looked to drive but gets a faint edge to Uma Chetry.
Dayalan Hemalatha c †Chetry b Henry 2 (3)
Matches: 5
UPW: 3
GG: 2
Since hanging up Australia’s baggy green cap in 2013, Lisa Sthalekar has gone on to don many others. From calling games to coaching in New South Wales, Sthalekar has done it all in the cricketing world. For the past three years, the former Aussie skipper has been mentoring the UP Warriorz in the Women’s Premier League.
Read the interview by Rajdeep Saha here:
UP Warriorz brings in two changes: Georgia Voll and Gouher Sultana for Tahlia McGrath and Saima Thakor.
UP Warriorz: 1 Kiran Navgire, 2 Georgia Voll, 3 Vrinda Dinesh, 4 Deepti Sharma (capt), 5 Shweta Sehrawat, 6 Grace Harris, 7 Uma Chetry (wk), 8 Chinelle Henry, 9 Sophie Ecclestone, 10 Kranti Goud, 11 Gouher Sultana.
No changes for Gujarat Giants.
Gujarat Giants: 1 Beth Mooney (wk), 2 D Hemalatha, 3 Harleen Deol, 4 Ash Gardner (capt), 5 Phoebe Litchfield,6 Deandra Dottin, 7 Kashvee Gautam, 8 Bharti Fulmali, 9 Tanuja Kanwar, 10 Meghna Singh, 11 Priya Mishra
UPW wins the toss, opts to bowl.
Square boundaries slightly skewed – 50m and 59m, 66m is straight down.
A mixed soil surface that is hard and rolled well. “Pretty good to bat”, said Mithali Raj. A decent covering of grass, which means seamers will come into play.
Teams winning have preferred chasing.
Georgia Voll was presented with her WPL cap. We are likely to see a change in the UP Warriorz line-up today!
What better way to start the Lucknow leg with homeside UP Warriorz playing the opener against Gujarat Giants, and in search of revenge.
UPW vs GG is Match No. 15
Hello and welcome back to WPL 2025 action!
We’re on to the third leg, heading to the Ekana Stadium in Lucknow for four matches that could see the other two teams which will qualify (DC is through).
