3 teams that could be badly affected if more England players pull out of WPL 2024 ft. Mumbai Indians
Most of the Women's Premier League (WPL) sides have some important decisions to make as many England players could pull out of the upcoming season. WPL 2024 is set to take place from February 23 to March 17 In Bengaluru and Delhi.
England will travel to New Zealand for five T20Is with the first game beginning on February 19. According to reports from ESPNCricinfo, English players in WPL 2024 have been informed that they will be considered unavailable for selection for the first three T20Is if they feature in the business end of the WPL 2024 season.
England skipper Heather Knight and pacer Lauren Bell have already pulled out of the upcoming season to be available for the T20I series, with more players possibly following the same. This could certainly affect some WPL teams and here's a look at three of them that could be impacted the most:
#3 Royal Challengers Bangalore
The Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) have already lost the services of Heather Knight, announcing South Africa's Nadine de Klerk as her replacement. Knight's experience is something that RCB would miss in their lower middle-order, especially if Ellyse Perry bats at No. 3.
RCB also have another England player in their ranks in fast bowler Kate Cross. She too brings some much-needed experience in that department, especially with RCB having let go of Megan Schutt. They will need her experience alongside India's Renuka Thakur.
#2 UP Warriorz
UP Warriorz have a power-packed batting line-up when it comes to overseas options as they have added Sri Lanka's Chamari Athapaththu as Lauren Bell's replacement. However, that also means that the bowling department looks a bit thin on overseas experience.
This makes the role of star spinner Sophie Ecclestone even more crucial. The Warriorz cannot afford to lose a player of her quality as they will find her difficult to replace if she pulls out. England head coach Jon Lewis is also the coach of the UP Warriorz so it will be interesting to see if even he needs to pull out of the season.
#1 Mumbai Indians
Defending WPL champions Mumbai Indians (MI) had a couple of England players in the nucleus of their success last year - all-rounder Nat Sciver-Brunt and fast bowler Issy Wong.
Sciver-Brunt was sensational both with bat and ball and also hit the winning runs for MI in the final. Wong made impactful contributions with the ball, including a stunning hattrick against the UP Warriorz.
While Mumbai do have the likes of Shabnim Ismail in the pace department and all-rounders like Chloe Tryon to step up as back-up, they will desperately look to retain the combination that took them to the title.