"As a captain, how much are you understanding the Indian players?" - Sushma Verma on Beth Mooney heading into Gujarat Giants' WPL 2024 clash vs DC
Sushma Verma has picked Beth Mooney's below-par batting and captaincy as one of the factors behind the Gujarat Giants' indifferent run in WPL 2024.
The Giants are placed last in the points table and are the only team yet to register a win in the ongoing season. They will face the Delhi Capitals in their final game of the Bengaluru leg of the tournament on Sunday, March 3.
During a discussion on Sports 18, Verma was asked what the Gujarat Giants need to do to end their winless run thus far.
"I feel they haven't done anything so far. They have such a strong batting unit. Beth Mooney as a captain, but not leading from the front. She is not batting like that and that sort of approach is also not being seen. I am seeing her going slightly haywire as a captain on the field, considering the body language she has," she responded.
"She is not happy with the field placements as well quite a few times. As a captain, how much are you understanding the Indian players, the Indian conditions, and the limitations you have? You need to know all of that," the former GG player added.
The Giants have been slightly unfortunate as they have lost all three tosses thus far and have been forced to bat first. They are yet to reach the 150-run mark, with Mooney aggregating only 48 runs at an average of 16.00 and a strike rate of 106.67 in three innings.
"Ash Gardner has not lived up to her big name thus far" - Sushma Verma on the Gujarat Giants' other issues
![Ashleigh Gardner has scored 52 runs in three innings at a strike rate of 101.96. [P/C: wplt20.com]](https://statico.sportskeeda.com/editor/2024/03/67fe5-17094522503720-1920.jpg?w=500)
Sushma Verma noted that Ashleigh Gardner and top Indian players like Sneh Rana and Dayalan Hemalatha haven't also lived up to expectations.
"I think leaving all of that behind, she (Mooney) needs to perform herself first. Ash Gardner has not lived up to her big name thus far. I have similar expectations from Sneh Rana and Hemalatha because they are big names in Indian cricket," she observed.
The wicketkeeper-batter added that the Gujarat Giants batters need to give defendable totals to their bowlers.
"Hemalatha has been scoring good runs in domestic cricket. Someone should score runs at least for this team. Your bowlers are in form. They are doing better. You will have to give them a total to defend," Verma stated.
None of the Gujarat Giants players have scored a half-century thus far. They have struggled to score quickly as well, with Tanuja Kanwar (139.13) being the only one to have a strike rate of more than 110.