Is it too early to write off Gujarat Giants from the ongoing season of the Women’s Premier League?
After finishing at the bottom of the table in WPL 2023, with just two wins in eight matches, the Giants are off to another horrendous start, losing to Mumbai Indians (MI) and Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) and sitting last, a fate that continues to haunt them.
The Giants underwent a significant overhaul, releasing 11 players from their 19-player squad ahead of the WPL 2024 auction.
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The return of skipper Beth Mooney, who suffered an injury after facing only three deliveries last season, was a positive development. The acquisitions of Australian talent Phoebe Litchfield and Indian youngster Kashvee Gautam at a combined hefty price of Rs. 3 crore also appeared as a boost of confidence, but the team has not found its footing yet.
Just days before the tournament opener, Kashvee - the most expensive uncapped Indian - was ruled out with an injury. Even if it is too early, the promise that Mooney’s return held ahead of the tournament seems to have dissipated.
The team selection and player positions in the XI have also been unstable.
In the opening fixture against MI, Veda Krishnamurthy paired up with Mooney at the top. Veda has never opened in high-profile T20 tournaments and had only played a solitary One-Day International game as an opener, in 2016. The move failed miserably as she perished for a duck.
Against RCB, Harleen Deol paired up with Mooney despite her fledgling credentials as an opener, averaging 11.25 with a strike rate of 67.16 in four matches. She never got going, scoring 22 off 31.
Mooney, however, held her ground on the opening gambit for the first two games.
“In the first game, it was about her (Veda) trying to be a bit more aggressive, taking on that role with the bat that we know that she can do and she’s done in the past.
“And then against RCB, having four spinners, we thought that she might be able to use her skill-set a bit better through the middle-order, given that they had such heavy spin options through that period. And Harleen is pretty good against pace so that was the rationale,” said Mooney after the RCB game.
Meanwhile, Tanuja Kanwar has been the side’s only bright prospect thus far, both with bat and ball. However, the right-hander has found herself batting at number nine.
A middle-order, which boasts the likes of Litchfield and experienced all-rounders Ashleigh Gardner and Kathryn Bryce, has also failed to do the heavy lifting. The team’s overreliance on foreign players, coupled with an inexperienced Indian core, has exacerbated its woes.
The team has also failed to rekindle some of the only positives from its previous campaign. South African batter Laura Wolvaardt, who replaced Mooney in the first season, has yet to make the eleven. Sneh Rana, who led the Giants during Mooney’s absence, has had a forgettable start (12 runs and 0/39 in two matches).
“We have Laura on the bench, so she will be considered at some point to provide some stability. Four days ago, we hadn’t played any game and thought we had our best XI. It’s really tough to try and change it and make snap decisions based on results,” Mooney remarked.
Though team balance may appear as an overused term at times, MI and Delhi Capitals have batted for it, and their priorities reflect in the outcomes.
While the Giants are only getting started, they must buckle down quickly before the leaders dash into the playoffs.
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