MUMBAI, Mar 16: Ashleigh Gardner justified her top billing among the overseas recruits with a superb all-round performance that ensured a hard-fought 11-run victory over Delhi Capitals in a Women’s Premier League match here today.
After setting a below-par target of 148 for Delhi Capitals to win, Gujarat fought back well with an inspired show with the ball and in the field to bowl the second-placed team out for 136 in 18.4 overs here on a breezy night at the Brabourne Stadium.
Gardner first scored 51 off 33 balls with the bat and then took 2/19 in 3.4 overs under pressure to ease the road to victory for Giants, who have now leapfrogged RCB once again to stay fourth in five-team table. While DC’s points tally remains 8 from 6 games, GG now have 4 points from six games.
The victory also ensured that Giants remained in contention for a place in the play-offs.
Arundhati Reddy (25) and Shikha Pandey (8 not out) kept Delhi’s hopes alive till late in the game with their 35-run ninth-wicket stand, but Gujarat managed to pull off a favourable result with Kim Garth (4-0-18-2) and Gardner producing impressive spells.
Reddy and Pandey got together when Delhi were exactly 48 runs away from win with more than five overs left and batted sensibly without any element of risk but Garth eventually ended their association.
Reddy, who struck four fours in her 17-ball 25, played one shot too many as she was caught at cover when Delhi needed another 13 to win and Gardner took the final wicket of Yadav to seal the game.
Delhi made a shaky start losing dashing batter Shafali Verma (8) and Meg Lanning (18) inside the Powerplay, and also Alice Capsey, who was run out after a promising 11-ball 22 with two fours and as many sixes.
While Shafali was cleaned up by left-arm spinner Tanuja Kanwar, Lanning was guilty of playing across the line and was pinned leg-before the wickets off Gujarat Giants captain Sneh Rana.
Capsey was the victim of a poor call for a single with Jemimah Rodrigues when there was none, as she was run out even before she could put her bat down on the ground to drag it in.
Earlier in the first half of the contest, half-centuries from Beth Mooney’s replacement Laura Wolvaardt (57) and Gardner (51 not out) took Gujarat Giants to a total of 147/4 in their 20 overs, after they had crawled to an ordinary 53/2 halfway through.
Harleen Deol once again got a start but could not convert it into a big score, perishing for a 33-ball 31 with four fours but the pair of Wolvaardt and Gardner did well to save the blushes for the Gujarat side. (PTI)
Scoreboard
Gujarat Giants:
Sophia Dunkley c Jonassen b Kapp 4
Laura Wolvaardt b Reddy 57
Harleen Deol c Bhatia b Jonassen 31
Ashleigh Gardner not out 51
Dayalan Hemalatha c Poonam Yadav b Jonassen 1
Extras: (LB-2, W-1) 3
Total: (For 4 wickets in 20 overs) 147.
Fall of wickets: 1-4, 2-53, 3-134, 4-147.
Bowling: Marizanne Kapp 4-0-24-1, Radha Yadav 3-0-23-0, Alice Capsey 1-0-7-0, Shikha Pandey 3-0-21-0, Jess Jonassen 4-0-38-2, Poonam Yadav 2-0-7-0, Arundhati Reddy 3-0-25-1.
Delhi Capitals:
Meg Lanning lbw b Rana 18
Shafali Verma b Kanwar 8
Alice Capsey run out 22
Jemimah Rodrigues c Verma b Garth 1
Marizanne Kapp run out 36
Jess Jonassen c Gardner b Deol 4
Taniya Bhatia b Gardner 1
Arundhati Reddy c Rana b Garth 25
Radha Yadav c Verma b Kanwar 1
Shikha Pandey not out 8
Poonam Yadav c Hemalatha b Gardner 0
Extras: (W-12) 12
Total: (All out in 18.4 overs) 136
Fall of wickets: 1-10, 2-48, 3-50, 4-52, 5-81, 6-97, 7-97, 8-100, 9-135.
Bowling: Kim Garth 4-0-18-2, Tanuja Kanwar 4-0-29-2, Ashleigh Gardner 3.4-0-19-2, Sneh Rana 3-0-27-1, Mansi Joshi 1-0-16-0, Harleen Deol 3-0-27-1.
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