IMAGES from the Women's Premier League match played between Mumbai Indians and UP Warriorz in Navi Mumbai on Friday.
Isabelle Wong (4/15) recorded the first hat-trick of the Women's Premier League after Nat Sciver-Brunt's brutal 38-ball 72 as Mumbai Indians stormed into the final with a 72-run drubbing of UP Warriorz in the Eliminator in Navi Mumbai on Friday.
The final of the inaugural WPL will be played between the two best sides that occupied the top two spots of the points table with 12 points each, Delhi Capitals and Mumbai Indians, on Sunday at the Brabourne Stadium.
Having set a daunting 183-run target, Mumbai Indians blew away what had been a resolute batting from the top and middle-order of the UP Warriorz, with Wong producing a superb hat-trick in the 13th over to seal the outcome in favour of her side.
After removing the dangerous Alyssa Healy (11) early and getting rid of an on-song Kiran Navgire (43), Wong cleaned up Simran Sheikh (0) and Sophie Ecclestone (0) to take a wicket each on the second, third and the fourth deliveries of her third over to produce a match-winning spell.
UP Warriorz were shot out for a mere 110 in 17.4 overs.
Navgire waged a lone battle for UP Warrioz with an entertaining 27-ball 43 with four fours and three sixes, but none of the other batters troubled the scorers in what turned out to be a one-sided contest.
UP Warriorz were off to a disastrous start, losing openers Healy and Shweta Sehrawat (1) inside the first three overs.
While Saika Ishaque (2.4-1-24-2) produced a wicket-maiden second over that included the scalp of Sehrawat, Wong got Healy caught by her counterpart Harmanpreet Kaur at mid-off in the third.
Mumbai dealt another severe blow on the UP Warriorz when batting mainstay Tahlia McGrath (7) was run out in the fifth over while trying to steal a single from a packed off-side field.
With their backs firmly against the wall, Navgire took the attack to Mumbai with two fours and a six off Ishaque and Grace Harris also got a four. The sixth over yielded 20 runs for UP Warriorz, who were 46/3 at the end of the powerplay.
Navgire also got a lifeline when she tried to clear the ropes again, off Amelia Kerr, with Hayley Matthews (1/13) spilling a regulation chance.
Navgire and Harris's fourth-wicket stand for 35 runs was eventually broken in the eighth over when Sciver-Brunt claimed her first wicket, getting the latter caught by Wong for 14. At the halfway stage, UP Warriorz were 63/4.
Navgire then smacked two sixes off Kerr and Deepti Sharma (16) got a four to collect 19 runs from the 12th over, but Mumbai Indians broke their stand soon.
Navgire perished after playing one straight to deep midwicket, after a quickfire 43, off Wong. The English bowler struck on the next delivery to clean up Sheikh and had Ecclestone chop one on to her wickets to complete her hat-trick.
Nat Sciver-Brunt's blistering unbeaten 72 powered Mumbai Indians to a daunting 182/4 in the Eliminator clash of the Women's Premier League against UP Warriorz in Navi Mumbai on Friday.
The winner of this match will face Delhi Capitals in the final on Sunday.
Sciver-Brunt was at her brutal best with the bat, clobbering nine fours and two sixes to score an unbeaten 72 from only 38 balls and certainly made the most of an early lifeline when she was on six, with Sophie Ecclestone (2/39) dropping a regulation catch off Rajeshwari Gayakwad at mid-off.
UP Warriorz controlled the first half of the knockout clash at the DY Patil Stadium largely through their spin bowlers, not allowing the majority of Mumbai batters to get away or notch up any big individual totals, barring Sciver-Brunt, who led the fight for her side.
The right-handed Sciver-Brunt provided much-needed impetus late in the innings for Mumbai Indians in the company of Amelia Kerr (29 off 19 balls, 5x4s), adding 60 runs for the fourth wicket.
Having added 78 runs from overs 5 to 15, Mumbai Indians smacked 66 runs in the last five overs to put up a stiff total.
The likes of Yastika Bhatia (21), Hayley Matthews (26) and Harmanpreet Kaur (14) got starts but UP Warriorz kept control for the large part of the game after an erratic start.
UP Warriorz bowled wide at the start and Mumbai Indians batters made most of the opportunities with Bhatia, who hit the first ball of the game for a four, leading the charge.
The left-handed batter looked in prime form but Anjali Sarvani (3-0-17-1) returned in the fifth over to have her caught at mid-on for 21 off 18 balls with four fours. The Mumbai wicketkeeper-batter added 31 runs for the opening wicket with Matthews.
Matthews hit the first six of the game, sweeping Grace Harris over deep square leg to mark a perfect start for Mumbai.
At the end of the powerplay, Mumbai Indians reached 46/1. Matthews and Sciver-Brunt took Mumbai ahead, with UP Warriorz vice-captain Deepti Sharma nearly breaking their stand in the ninth over.
Sarvani claimed a sharp, low catch at deep square leg but the third umpire ruled it in favour of Matthews, on 19, with replays suggesting that the ball had touched the ground.
However, UP Warriorz did not take too long to break their second-wicket stand, this time the 16-year-old Parshavi Chopra getting Matthews (26 off 26 balls, 2x4s, 1x6s) caught at long-on off her first delivery in the 10th over.
The young bowler nearly got her second wicket when Harmanpreet (4) missed a sweep shot on a flighted delivery with the ball landing right next to her toe. The Mumbai skipper reviewed immediately after being adjudged out leg-before, and the replays showed Harmanpreet got an inside edge.
Sciver-Brunt then took the attack to the opponent, hitting two fours and a six off Chopra in the 12th over to provide her side with much-needed momentum.
Mumbai, who brought up their 100 in the next over, lost captain Harmanpreet (14 off 15 balls, 1x4s) against the run of play with Ecclestone cleaning up the batter with a full delivery angled in.
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