All-rounder Nat Sciver-Brunt starred in both departments as Mumbai Indians produced a clinical performance to return to winning ways with a five-wicket victory over a self-destructive Gujarat Giants in their Women’s Premier League match on Tuesday. Sciver-Brunt smashed a 39-ball 57, her second consecutive half-century, after taking two wickets for 26, as MI first bowled out GG for a modest 120 and then chased down the target, scoring 122 for 5 with 3.5 overs to spare. Invited to bat, Gujarat paid the price for their over-aggression, with MI’s bowlers, led by off-spinner Hayley Matthews, delivering a tight performance. Shabnim Ismail (1/17), Amelia Kerr (2/22), and Amanjot Kaur (1/17) also played key roles in restricting Gujarat’s batting. In response, Sciver-Brunt dazzled with a flurry of boundaries, playing cut, pull, sweep, and scoop shots with ease. She hit 11 fours during her innings and was dismissed in the 16th over with just seven runs required to win.
Chasing 121, MI lost Matthews (17), Yastika Bhatia (8) and skipper Harmanpreet Kaur (4) early as MI slipped to 55-3 in the 8th over.
However, Sciver-Brunt continued to dominate, bringing up her fifty with a four off Ashleigh Gardner in the 14th over. Amelia Kerr (19) also contributed with a six and a four before being dismissed by Gautam.
Earlier, Gujarat’s batting imploded as they tried to muscle the ball rather than build partnerships.
Only two batters in the top six reached double digits, with Harleen Deol top-scoring with a 31-ball 32. Kashvee Gautam (20) and Tanuja Kanwar (13) also got starts but failed to capitalize.
Gujarat were in early trouble, crashing to 16 for 3 in the 4th over, with Beth Mooney (1), Laura Wolvaardt (4), and Dayalan Hemalatha (9) back in the pavilion. Hemalatha has been in poor form for some time.
Gujarat’s in-form skipper, Ashleigh Gardner (10), tried to inject some momentum, pulling Sciver-Brunt for a six, but was dismissed on the very next delivery. Deandra Dottin went for a slog and was stumped by Yastika Bhatia off Kerr, leaving Gujarat at 43 for 5 in 8.2 overs.
Deol and Gautam added 24 runs off 19 balls, with the latter hitting a big six off Ismail. However, Matthews induced a faint edge to dismiss Gautam.
Deol hit two boundaries off Kerr in the 13th over but was dismissed by Amanjot Kaur in the 17th over.
Sayali Satghare (13) hit a couple of boundaries late in the innings to offer some respectability to the total.
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