By Deepti Sharma’s third consecutive half-century, an unbeaten 88 off 60 balls, was not enough as UP Warriorz fell short by 8 runs against Gujarat Giants. Beth Mooney’s 74 not out off 52 deliveries propelled Giants to 152/8, despite a spirited 3-wicket haul from Shabnam Shakil. Although Deepti and Poonam Khemnar put on an unbroken 109-run stand, it wasn’t sufficient as UP Warriorz finished the league stage with 6 points, hoping for other results to go their way.
Laura Wolvaardt’s aggressive start for Giants set the tone, with Wolvaardt’s attacking strokes guiding Giants to 53/0 in the powerplay. However, UP Warriorz fought back, picking up wickets at regular intervals to restrict Giants’ progress. Despite the late surge from Mooney, who scored two fours off the last over, Giants finished on 152/8.
UP Warriorz began their chase in shambles, losing early wickets including Alyssa Healy and Chamari Athapaththu in the same over. Despite Deepti’s valiant effort, the pressure built up as the required run rate soared. A 14-run over from Ash Gardner and a 17-run over from Kathryn Bryce provided some hope, but the task proved too much as Deepti fell short in the final over, and Giants emerged victorious.
Brief scores: Gujarat Giants 152/8 in 20 overs (Beth Mooney 74, Laura Wolvaardt 43; Sophie Ecclestone 3-38) beat UP Warriorz 144/5 in 20 overs (Deepti Sharma 88, Poonam Khemnar 36*; Shabnam Shakil 3-11) by 8 runs.
