3 potential opening combinations for MI in WPL 2023

Mumbai Indians (MI) appointed Jhulan Goswami as their mentor and Charlotte Edwards as their head coach ahead of the competition. They signed the Indian captain, Harmanpreet Kaur, for INR 1.8 crore at the auction.

The first season of the WPL will start on March 4. It will be a five-team competition involving the following franchises: Royal Challengers Bangalore, Mumbai Indians, Delhi Capitals, Gujarat Giants, and UP Warriorz. They will play all the matches in Mumbai on two grounds: DY Patil Stadium and Brabourne Stadium.

The full squad: Harmanpreet Kaur (INR 1.8 crore), Nat Sciver-Brunt (INR 3.2 crore), Amelia Kerr (INR 1 crore), Pooja Vastrakar (INR 1.9 crore), Yastika Bhatia (INR 1.5 crore), Heather Graham (INR 30 lakh), Isabelle Wong (INR 30 lakh), Amanjot Kaur (INR 50 lakh), Dhara Gujar (INR 10 lakh), Saika Ishaque (INR 10 lakh), Hayley Matthews (INR 40 lakh), Chloe Tryon (INR 30 lakh), Humairaa Khazi (INR 10 lakh), Priyanka Bala (INR 20 lakh), Sonam Yadav (INR 10 lakh), Jintimani Kalita (INR 10 lakh), Neelam Bisht (INR 10 lakh)

We look at the three potential opening partnerships they can field in the WPL.

#1 Hayley Matthews and Yastika Bhatia

Two back-to-back 𝐏𝐎𝐓𝐌 awards, two crucial wins,
1️⃣ Hayley Matthews 💙

#MumbaiIndians #AaliRe #OneFamily #T20WorldCup https://t.co/N3iFAXDghB

This is the most likely combination the Mumbai Indians are likely to go ahead with. Hayley Matthews is a West Indian right-handed batter who has a lot of experience opening the batting in the T20 format despite being just 24 years old. Yastika Bhatia is a 22-year-old left-handed batter who has shown promise at the domestic level.

Matthews has scored 527 runs in the last 2 years in T20Is at an average of 22 and a strike rate of 99. She scored 130 runs in four innings in the recently concluded ICC Women's T20 World Cup in South Africa, playing high-utility knocks against England and Ireland.

Yastika has played 15 T20Is since her debut against Australia in October 2021. Although she has not performed well (146 runs in 10 innings at a strike rate of under 90), the national team used her as an opener in the absence of Smriti Mandhana in the match against Pakistan in the T20 World Cup.

#2 Hayley Matthews and Nat Sciver-Brunt

81*(40) | SR: 202 🔥

😱😱 - Nat Sciver-Brunt, what an innings! 👏💙

#OneFamily #MumbaiIndians #AaliRe #T20WorldCup https://t.co/VZpEgH3O2f

Although Nat Sciver-Brunt primarily bats at number 3 or 4 for the national side, MI might consider sending her to open the batting. She has experience as an opener in franchise cricket, where she has scored 805 runs in 37 innings at an average of 34 and a strike rate of 121.

Even as a number 3 batter, Nat has batted enough in the Powerplay overs. She has shown the ability to counter-attack and play conservative cricket, adapting to the match situation. She scored 216 runs at an average of 72 in the T20 World Cup and finished as the second-highest run-getter of the tournament.

#3 Nat Sciver-Brunt and Yastika Bhatia

Moment when Yastika Bhatia became a part of #OneFamily 💙

#MumbaiIndians #AaliRe #WPLAuction https://t.co/CETu26XTO7

If Hayley Matthews gets injured, becomes unavailable, or is out of form coming into the tournament, this might be an option. The presence of one of the best players in the world might also get the best out of Yastika as an opener.

While this option may not be the most optimal one for the Harmanpreet Kaur-led side, the absence of Matthews will allow them to field another overseas player to improve other areas of their team.