Gardner heroics in vain as Perry launches WPL with win

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Gardner heroics in vain as Perry launches WPL with win

Ash Gardner and Beth Mooney both cracked superb half-centuries but it was their fellow *********** half-centurion Ellyse Perry who ended up trumping them in a scintillating opening to the Women’s Premier League in India.

The trio of Aussie luminaries all shone with their fifties, and Gardner’s first knock as Gujarat Giants’ captain in Friday’s WPL launch match in Vadodara proved particularly special as she smote eight sixes in her blistering 39-ball 79 not out.

Gardner also took two wickets in an exceptional first over as she looked on course to lead her side to victory over defending champs Royal Challengers Bengaluru, only for Perry to lead the fightback and Indian star Richa Ghosh to finish the job dazzlingly as RCB launched their defence with a six-wicket win.

“Pretty flattening to be honest,” admitted a dejected Gardner, whose side, despite her heroics, were let down by poor fielding after the Giants had scored 5-201, leaving RCB having to pull off a record WPL chase to win.

“Two-hundred was probably only a par score and we needed to bowl really well. It was not to be unfortunately. We dropped some chances, which hurt us in the end.”

The most crucial miss came when Ghosh was dropped in the deep by Simran Shaikh as she hoicked her first ball off Priya Mishra, a full toss, to deep midwicket.

It was a fatal let-off as Ghosh went on to play a stupendous innings, 64no off just 27 ******, to lead RCB to a win with nine ****** to spare.

Gardner, who had picked up the key wickets of Smriti Mandhana and Danni Wyatt-Hodge with just her second and sixth ****** at the top of the order, was later particularly roughly treated in her second over by Ghosh, who smashed her for 4, 6, 4, 4 and 4 – 22 in all, plus one wide.

The India wicketkeeper hit seven fours and four sixes and was given impressive support from Kanika Ahuja (30no off 13) as the pair led the champions home.

Earlier, Perry, back after her hip injury suffered in the Ashes Test, had set the tone in RCB’s chase with a 34-ball 57, which featured two sixes and was facilitated by her being dropped twice.

The great allrounder couldn’t bowl for RCB as she recovers from her injury, and they missed her excellence as Mooney (56 off 42) hit her fourth WPL half-century, which included three successive fours off the spin of compatriot Georgia Wareham, who proved hugely expensive with her 1-50 off three overs.

Gardner, who’s taken over the captaincy to let Mooney concentrate on her wicketkeeping and batting, put on a spectacular show, depositing three successive sixes off Prema Rawat – straight, over deep midwicket and deep square leg – before getting to 50 off 25 ******.

Three more sixes followed in an over from VJ Joshitha as she finished with eight maximums in total, equalling the WPL record in a single innings that New Zealander Sophie Devine recorded in 2023.

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