Tata WPL 2023: A Look at Top Players & Highlights so Far

By: WE Staff

The Tata Women's Premier League (WPL) 2023 has set new parameters for women's cricket in India. This tournament is an initiative taken by the Board of Control for Cricket (BCCI) India to promote women in cricket and sports, not just in India but all around the globe.

This is a 22 days tournament that started on 4 March 2023 and will end on 26 March 2023.

The best female cricket players from all over the world have been selected to play in 5 different teams. The teams and members of the respective teams have been purchased during the auction. Three teams have been bought by the existing franchises of the Indian Premier League (IPL) men's which includes Mumbai Indians, Royal Challengers Bangalore, and Delhi Capitals. The remaining two franchises UP Warriorz and Gujarat Giants have been bought by the Capri Global Holdings firm and the Adani Group respectively.

A Glittery Beginning

The Tata Women's Premier League started with a bang of music and entertainment. For launching the Tata WPL, an official music video was shot which is named Tata WPL Anthem, which was composed and sung by renowned singers Shankar Mahadevan, Harshdeep Kaur, Neeti Mohan, Aishaanya Joshi, Akriti Kakar, and Agsy. The inaugural day of the tournament started with a spectacular performance given by Bollywood stars Kriti Sanon and Kiara Advani along with music sensation AP Dhillon.

Match Tally

A total of 14 matches have been played so far at the DY Patil Stadium, Mumbai, and Brabourne Stadium, CCI. Players from each team are giving their best performance to win the grand title of Tata WPL. Some teams have been leading the points table whereas there are teams who are struggling at the bottom of the table. Let's have a look at the points table of the ongoing premier league.

As the points table shows, skipper Harmanpreet Kaur's team Mumbai Indians leads the point table with 10 points winning all 5 matches played to date. They have an NRR of +3.325. Whereas Smirti Mandhana's team Royal Challengers Bangalore made its first win against Gujarat Giants on March 15 and made it to the points table.

Apart from the best-performing teams, it is the powerful players who are giving some splendid performances to make their team win the championship. Let us have a look at some of the best players who grabbed the titles of orange caps, purple caps, and player of the match.

Top 3 Purple Cap winners:

Saika Ishaque

Speaking about the purple cap, the name Saika Ishaque from Mumbai Indians will always top the list. She is the leading wicket-taker during the tournament. Saika grabbed a total of 12 wickets so far.

Hayley Matthews

Another Mumbai Indians player, Hayley Matthews has made a record of taking continuous wickets of her opponents. She has taken 10 wickets in 5 matches so far.

Sophie Ecclestone

The Australian cricketer Sophie Ecclestone from UP Warriorz has a record of 8 wickets in the competition.

Top 3 Orange Cap winners:

Meg Lanning

Captain of Delhi Capitals, Meg Lanning holds the Orange Cap by scoring 221 runs, the highest score of WPL to date. She has given 33 fours and 3 sixes with a strike rate of 138.99 to make her highest record.

Ellyse Perry

Ellyse Perry is the power player of Royal Challengers Bangalore. She holds the second position for the most number of runs taken during the tournament. A total of 195 runs with a strike rate of 137.32 has been given by Ellyse.

Alyssa Healy

Another international player made a record of 185 runs, third highest in WPL. Alyssa Healy has a strike rate of 156.78

List of 'Player of the Match' titles given so far:

Harmanpreet Kaur

Captain Kaur holds a record for the most number of 'Player of the Match titles. She has been given 3 titles for her extraordinary performance.

Jess Jonassen

Jess has grabbed 2 players of the match titles till now

Another player who has achieved this title are Tara Norris, Grace Harris, Hayley Matthews, Sophia Dunkley, Saika Ishaque, Alyssa Healy, and Marizanne Kapp.