Navi Mumbai – A quick toss, a familiar call. Mumbai Indians skipper Harmanpreet Kaur won the coin flip and chose to bowl first, noting simply, “chasing is always a better option, especially in the night games”.
The headline change comes at the top. Hayley Matthews, sidelined for a fortnight with a sore shoulder, takes Nat Sciver-Brunt’s place after the England all-rounder woke up “unwell”. Matthews is expected to reunite with wicketkeeper G Kamalini at the top of the order, pushing Amelia Kerr back to her preferred No. 3 slot.
Gujarat Giants, unbeaten after two nail-biters, make one enforced switch. Anushka Sharma, who struck a classy 44 on debut, sits out with her right hand strapped. All-rounder Ayushi Soni slots into the middle order.
Form and history
• Giants have edged past UP Warriorz and Delhi Capitals to sit second on the early WPL ladder.
• Mumbai have a win and a loss, yet boast a perfect seven-from-seven record over the Giants across seasons.
Pitch and conditions
During the pitch report, WV Raman described a surface that “should be good for batting”, adding the trimmed square boundaries “could make life difficult for the spinners”. Dew is likely, another reason Mumbai prefer to know the target.
Playing XIs
Mumbai Indians: G Kamalini (wk), Hayley Matthews, Amelia Kerr, Harmanpreet Kaur (capt), Nicola Carey, Sajeevan Sajana, Amanjot Kaur, Poonam Khemnar, Shabnim Ismail, Sanskriti Gupta, Triveni Vasistha.
Gujarat Giants: Beth Mooney (wk), Sophie Devine, Ayushi Soni, Ashleigh Gardner (capt), Georgia Wareham, Bharti Fulmali, Kashvee Gautam, Kanika Ahuja, Tanuja Kanwar, Rajeshwari Gayakwad, Renuka Singh.
What’s at stake
Early days, yes, but a third straight win would keep Gujarat on Delhi’s coattails, while Mumbai can ill-afford to slip into logjam territory. Much hinges on how rust-free Matthews looks and whether Gujarat’s slower bowlers can protect those inviting ropes.
First ball shortly.
