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The inaugural edition of the Women’s IPL begins with an entertaining match. The opening ceremony started with the performances of Bollywood celebrities. Kiara Advani, AP Dhillon and Kriti Sanon set the tone with their performances.

Also, a massive number of crowd was present to enjoy this match. It can be seen that people are taking an interest in women’s cricket.

Overall, the Women’s IPL begins with a bang.

A Harmanpreet Kaur’s Special

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Harmanpreet kaur’s sensational and entertaining knock, consisting of 14 boundaries set the tone for the tournament. She scored 65 runs in just 30 balls. People don’t expect this kind of knocks in Women’s cricket. So its a big positive for Women’s cricket and the tournament.

Mumbai Indians starts their campaign with the win ,disappointment for Gujarat Giants

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Mumbai Indians beat Gujarat Giants by 143 runs in the opening match of WIPL. The allround performance by Mumbai Indians and Sensational knock by captain Harmanpreet Kaur made the match look onesided for Mumbai.

Also Harmanpreet was supported by the Nat Sciver Brunt and Amelia Kerr.

Mumbai Indians’ bowler Saika Ishaque (4/11) produced a superb show which helped to restrict Gujarat Giants to just 64/9 in 15.1 overs.

Gujarat Giants in the chase crumbled as their captain Beth Mooney got injured in the first over. None of the Gujarat’s batters were able to repeat , what Harmanpreet did in the first innings. Also the fiery spell by Saika Ishaque made the chase look even more difficult for Gujarat.

What Players said on the tournament after the match?

Harmanpreet Kaur | Mumbai Indians captain: I think it was a brilliant start, it felt like a dream come true. First day and whatever we did it worked well for us. We kept things simpe and clear. Told players to play natural. It is a big day for women’s cricket and we talked about expressing ourselves. I watched the ball nicely and backed myself. Whatever came my way, I backed myself and it went my way. (On the team chat at the halfway mark) When we were batting, we knew it is a very good batting wicket. When the other team was bowling in the right spot, it was not easy to play. So told our bowlers it will not be easy if you bowl in the right spot. And I am happy that every bowler bowled well. It’s a big day and a big victory for us and the way we started, we are really happy.

Sciver-Brunt – The crowd was incredible in the first half, they got tired in the second half. A bit of an occasion, it is exciting, it is a big thing for womens cricket. Thats the best thing about playing in different conditions, you learn a lot of things. Saika is the most exicting person after she takes a wicket. There is a lot of local talent and that is exciting. (On Harmanpreet) It is very good to be in the same team. She is incredible, she looks so calm on the crease, she played brilliantly today.

Sneh Rana | Stand-in captain, Gujarat Giants – It’s just the start, some of the players soak it up early, some will take time (on players getting ready at this level). A learning curve for us and we’ll come back strongly. The physio will be better placed to explain (on Mooney’s injury). I want to stand-up for whatever the team needs, if I do get captaincy, we’ll try and execute our plans better. This was just the first match, we need to keep our heads high, we have players who have done well at the domestic level and we’ll certainly look to comeback stronger tomorrow.

By Rohit Dhore

Passionate cricket player and dedicated student at GHRCE, striving for excellence on and off the field.