The 'Women's Premier League' (WPL) Thread

dailydriver · 5th March 2023, 19:37

The (Indian) Women's Premier League has finally kicked off yesterday. The initial two matches have been very high scoring ones - the first batting sides in both cases breaching the 200 run mark.

Harmanpreet Kaur, the Indian captain, kicked off the campaign with a half century and a huge win for her franchisee - the Mumbai Indians.

Today's match between RCB & DC stood out for recording the tournament's first fifer: interestingly, by an American bowler.

Even though the fan following is yet to catch up, I earnestly hope WPL will not just kindle the interests of crores of cricket aficionados in India and abroad, but will also help strengthen our national team in the long run.

dailydriver · 9th March 2023, 19:40

With a couple hours of games concluded, the tournament is poised nicely.

Mumbai Indians and Delhi Capitals are on the top, winning both of their first two matches. They are facing each other today; the victor will top the chart for now.

Next in line are Gujarat Giants and UP Warriors, having both won one match each.

Surprise, surprise, the quintessential also rans RCB are at the bottom, having lost all of their three encounters. That their captain too dons a jersey with 18 on her back is interesting.

Contrary to initial expectations, most matches have been high scoring ones - boundaries being marked at just 55mts being cited as one of the reasons. Match after match, performances are improving, with the ball and the bat. Fielding, however, seems to everyone's achilles heel.

Eddy · 9th March 2023, 20:20

I’ve been following men’s cricket for as long as I can remember. Follow the IPL too. But my interest levels in Women’s cricket is limited to important matches in World Cups etc.

msdivy · 10th March 2023, 22:16

RCB, either men or women are not able to shake off their 'underperformer' tag.

dailydriver · 11th March 2023, 04:40

Quote:

Originally Posted by msdivy

RCB, either men or women are not able to shake off their 'underperformer' tag.

They currently hold the record of having lost all their matches! Yesterday's loss was doubly ignominious because they underperformed in all the departments - this was the tournament's first no loss loss/win too.

Even without proclaiming loudly that ee sala cup nammade, luck seems to have given RCB the short end

.

Watching WPL is turning out to be a different experience because there are no fan loyalties developed yet. Even among the Indian players, not many are known to the average viewer. Thus, one is able to enjoy the matches as a pure cricket lover.

yashg · 14th March 2023, 14:00

Anyone following/watching WPL? The Women's Premier League. If you aren't, you should. There's some great cricket being played and new stars being created. Just like the IPL, Mumbai Indians under the command of Harmanpreet Kaur are ruling and have won 4/4 of their matches. RCB despite having stars like Smriti Mandhana and Ellyse Perry have lost all 5 of their matches.

There's excellent shot making on display with several innings in excess of 200. There's been some great bowling as well. Marizanne Kapp took 5 for 16 against Gujarat Giants and in the same game Shafali Verma scored 76 off 28. Several new Indian stars have emerged like Saika Ishaque who was bought for just 10 lakhs by Mumbai is currently wearing the purple cap with 12 wickets. Kiran Navgire is another emerging name. Most Indian players like Harmanpreet Kaur, Jemimah Rodrigues, Yastika Bhatia, Harleen Deol have played meaningful knocks for their teams. International players who are doing good are Meg Lanning (Aus), Alyssa Healy (Aus), Marizanne Kapp (SA), Tara Norris (US), Hayley Matthews (WI), Issy Wong (Eng), Nat Sciver-Brunt (Eng) and such.

Jio Cinema is broadcasting it for free and it is a very good experience. One can choose from 5 different camera angles - main feed, cable cam, bird's eye, stump cam and batter cam. There are also 5 language options - English, Hindi, Tamil, Telugu and Kannada.

As far as batting is concerned, women's cricket is there with the men's cricket. Girls can hit and can hit big. Some of the shots will clear the boundaries in the biggest stadiums even without shortening the boundary. Cover drives that will make Rahul Dravid proud. Pace bowling lacks the sheer pace of the men's game obviously but overall bowling is not the most exciting part. Fielding is the weakest point. Women's fielding is at the level where men's Asian teams used to be in the 80s and 90s. There are some fantastic dives and catches here and there by some of the Australians and a handful of Indian girls, but it is mostly pedestrian. With more top level professional cricket and better coaching hopefully it will improve with time.

If you are into cricket, do check out some of the WPL games. You definitely won't get bored.

5th March 2023, 19:37	#1
dailydriver Senior - BHPian Join Date: Feb 2017 Location: Cynical City Posts: 1,217 Thanked: 6,413 Times	The 'Women's Premier League' (WPL) Thread The (Indian) Women's Premier League has finally kicked off yesterday. The initial two matches have been very high scoring ones - the first batting sides in both cases breaching the 200 run mark. Harmanpreet Kaur, the Indian captain, kicked off the campaign with a half century and a huge win for her franchisee - the Mumbai Indians. Today's match between RCB & DC stood out for recording the tournament's first fifer: interestingly, by an American bowler. Even though the fan following is yet to catch up, I earnestly hope WPL will not just kindle the interests of crores of cricket aficionados in India and abroad, but will also help strengthen our national team in the long run. Last edited by dailydriver : 5th March 2023 at 19:38.
	(2) Thanks

9th March 2023, 19:40	#2
dailydriver Senior - BHPian Join Date: Feb 2017 Location: Cynical City Posts: 1,217 Thanked: 6,413 Times	Re: The 'Women's Premier League' (WPL) Thread With a couple hours of games concluded, the tournament is poised nicely. Mumbai Indians and Delhi Capitals are on the top, winning both of their first two matches. They are facing each other today; the victor will top the chart for now. Next in line are Gujarat Giants and UP Warriors, having both won one match each. Surprise, surprise, the quintessential also rans RCB are at the bottom, having lost all of their three encounters. That their captain too dons a jersey with 18 on her back is interesting. Contrary to initial expectations, most matches have been high scoring ones - boundaries being marked at just 55mts being cited as one of the reasons. Match after match, performances are improving, with the ball and the bat. Fielding, however, seems to everyone's achilles heel.
	() Thanks

9th March 2023, 20:20	#3
Eddy Team-BHP Support Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Delhi Posts: 9,386 Thanked: 13,292 Times	Re: The 'Women's Premier League' (WPL) Thread I’ve been following men’s cricket for as long as I can remember. Follow the IPL too. But my interest levels in Women’s cricket is limited to important matches in World Cups etc.
	(1) Thanks

10th March 2023, 22:16	#4
msdivy Senior - BHPian Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Bangalore Posts: 1,815 Thanked: 2,826 Times	Re: The 'Women's Premier League' (WPL) Thread RCB, either men or women are not able to shake off their 'underperformer' tag.
	(1) Thanks

14th March 2023, 14:00	#6
yashg BHPian Join Date: Jan 2022 Location: Mumbai Posts: 230 Thanked: 1,198 Times View My Garage	Re: The Cricket Thread Anyone following/watching WPL? The Women's Premier League. If you aren't, you should. There's some great cricket being played and new stars being created. Just like the IPL, Mumbai Indians under the command of Harmanpreet Kaur are ruling and have won 4/4 of their matches. RCB despite having stars like Smriti Mandhana and Ellyse Perry have lost all 5 of their matches. There's excellent shot making on display with several innings in excess of 200. There's been some great bowling as well. Marizanne Kapp took 5 for 16 against Gujarat Giants and in the same game Shafali Verma scored 76 off 28. Several new Indian stars have emerged like Saika Ishaque who was bought for just 10 lakhs by Mumbai is currently wearing the purple cap with 12 wickets. Kiran Navgire is another emerging name. Most Indian players like Harmanpreet Kaur, Jemimah Rodrigues, Yastika Bhatia, Harleen Deol have played meaningful knocks for their teams. International players who are doing good are Meg Lanning (Aus), Alyssa Healy (Aus), Marizanne Kapp (SA), Tara Norris (US), Hayley Matthews (WI), Issy Wong (Eng), Nat Sciver-Brunt (Eng) and such. Jio Cinema is broadcasting it for free and it is a very good experience. One can choose from 5 different camera angles - main feed, cable cam, bird's eye, stump cam and batter cam. There are also 5 language options - English, Hindi, Tamil, Telugu and Kannada. As far as batting is concerned, women's cricket is there with the men's cricket. Girls can hit and can hit big. Some of the shots will clear the boundaries in the biggest stadiums even without shortening the boundary. Cover drives that will make Rahul Dravid proud. Pace bowling lacks the sheer pace of the men's game obviously but overall bowling is not the most exciting part. Fielding is the weakest point. Women's fielding is at the level where men's Asian teams used to be in the 80s and 90s. There are some fantastic dives and catches here and there by some of the Australians and a handful of Indian girls, but it is mostly pedestrian. With more top level professional cricket and better coaching hopefully it will improve with time. If you are into cricket, do check out some of the WPL games. You definitely won't get bored.
	(2) Thanks