Beth Mooney smashed an unbeaten 96 as an all-round Gujarat Giants thrashed UP Warriorz by 81 runs in a one-sided Women’s Premier League match in Lucknow on Monday. Mooney missed out what could have been the first century for any player this WPL season but her 59-ball unbeaten knock with 17 fours powered Gujarat Giants to a formidable 186/5, against which the hosts crumbled without any resistance. Chasing a target of 187, UPW could only make 105 from 17.1 overs as the Giants climbed up from the fifth spot to the second in the points table. UPW, who were placed third before the game, are now fifth.
UP Warriorz slipped to 36/5 in the eighth over following a disastrous start and none of their batters could put up any resistance against the Giants’ bowlers, who wrecked havoc on an under-pressure batting line-up.
Deandra Dottin (2/14) began with two wickets in the opening over, dismissing Kiran Navgire (0) and Georgia Voll (0), while Kashvee Gautam (3/11), Meghna Singh (1/21), Tanuja Kanwar (3/17) and Ashleigh Gardner (1/9) chipped in with vital breakthroughs.
UP Warriorz’s top order was found struggling against the early movement with the new ball as lack of sound judgement and technique landed them in trouble, which was followed by the absence of a fight-back from the middle order when the conditions had become relatively easier.
Grace Harris, who survived a close leg-before appeal early on, struck three fours to make 25 off 30 balls and she was the only specialist batter from her side to be among runs.
None of the Indian batters in the UP Warriorz’s middle-order could trouble the scorers. Vrinda Dinesh fell for one, skipper Deepti Sharma made six and Shweta Sehrawat scored five.
Chinelle Henry scored a late 14-ball 28 with three fours and two sixes and Uma Chetry made 17 but their efforts could only reduce the margin to some extent.
Earlier, Mooney was left stranded on 96 not out as Gujarat Giants scored 186 for five.
Mooney cracked as many as 17 boundaries from only 59 balls in her innings but with 10 runs needed to reach a triple-digit score in the last over, she could only manage five.
The left-handed Australian batter Mooney consolidated for the Giants with India’s Harleen Deol (45) after an early blow in the form of Dayalan Hemalatha (2), adding 101 runs for the second wicket off 68 balls.
Mooney was belligerent on both the sides of the wicket with her flicks and drives, piercing the field with ease.
Deol notched up her highest score of the season with a 32-ball 45 with six hits to the fence but could not get to the personal milestone of a half-century.
Sophie Ecclestone (2/34) bowled a crucial spell for the hosts UP Warriorz in their first match at the Ekana Stadium, accounting for Deol and the dangerous Deandra Dottin (17).
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