Harleen Deol became the second batter in two days to be retired out in the Women’s Premier League, walking back for a 36-ball 47 against the Delhi Capitals today (January 14).
UP Warriorz, who were asked to bat first at Navi Mumbai on Wednesday, did not have the greatest start, losing Kiran Navgire for a duck on the third ball of the innings. Skipper Meg Lanning, however, steadied the innings with a 38-ball 54, also becoming just the third batter to score 1,000 runs in the WPL in the process.
She put on 47 runs for the second wicket with Phoebe Litchfield, before the latter departed for 27. It brought Harleen Deol out at No.4. The ODI World Cup-winner started cautiously, making 11 in the first eight balls that she faced.
Retiring out Harleen Deol decision backfires
Deol overturned her slow start by scoring 28 runs in the next 18 deliveries, and was batting on 39 off 26 balls at the end of the 14th over. However, Harleen was able to score just 11 runs in the next 10 deliveries she faced, with the Warriorz at 141-3 after 17 overs.
With Chloe Tryon, Sophie Ecclestone, and Deepti Sharma yet to bat, Warriorz decided to retire out Deol, batting on 47 (36), much to her dismay. It made her just the second batter in WPL history to be dismissed in that fashion. A day earlier, Gujarat Giants’ Ayush Soni had become the first player to be retired out against Mumbai Indians. Overall, it is just the third instance in women’s franchise T20 cricket that a batter has been retired out, with Kathryn Bryce’s retired out in the Women’s Hundred in 2024 being the first.
Warriorz would have hoped for some quick runs after Deol was asked to walk back to the pavilion, but the tactic flopped spectacularly. In the remaining three overs, they could score only 13 more runs, losing four wickets as the batters aimed to go for the big hits. It left people wondering if the presence of a well-settled Deol on the crease would have proved more fruitful instead. Shafali Varma was the best bowler for Delhi, ending with 2-16 in her four overs, as Warriorz managed 154-8.
Match 7, UP Warriorz vs Delhi Capitals
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