"WPL off to a flyer!" - Twitter reacts as MI defeat DC in a last-ball thriller to kickstart the 2024 edition
The Harmanpreet Kaur-led Mumbai Indians (MI) outfit began the 2024 Women's Premier League (WPL) in style by defeating the Delhi Capitals (DC) in a last-ball thriller at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium on Friday, February 23. Debutant S Sajana struck a last-ball six off Alice Capsey to complete the run chase and begin MI's title defense in style.
MI were set a target of 172 runs after opting to bowl first. DC did not make the brightest of starts, but they grew into the contest, courtesy of Alice Capsey's brilliant 53-ball 75-run knock.
During the run chase, MI were struggling after losing both Hayley Matthews and Nat Scover-Brunt for low scores. But the Indian pair of Yastika Bhatia and Harmanpreet Kaur responded with fifties to keep the side in the run chase. DC had seemingly one hand on the win after the MI skipper was dismissed off the penultimate ball of the contest, with five runs still separating the two sides.
However, S Sajana showed no signs of nerves on her maiden outing and slammed a mammoth six over long-on, leading to wild celebrations in the MI camp.
Fans could not keep their calm following the nail-biting contest and are eager to see how the rest of the WPL season unfolds after a thrilling start.
Here are some of the reactions on Twitter:
"She was smacking sixes during the practice session and she showed us tonight" - MI skipper Harmanpreet Kaur on S Sajana
MI have made a strong start to the tournament and will be hopeful of capitalizing on the platform laid by their win over DC. The defending champions are next scheduled to face the Gujarat Giants on Sunday, February 25.
"Wicket looked fine while batting, we thought if we took the game deep, we felt we could win. She was smacking sixes during the practice session and she showed us tonight. We were looking to finish the game in the first 3 balls but we know we have depth in our batting, because of Sajana I'm standing here. Batting first or second does not matter, only conditions matter and according to that we change," Harmanpreet Kaur said during the post-match presentation.
The WPL action continues with the clash between the Royal Challengers Bangalore and the UP Warriorz at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium on Saturday, February 24.