Top 5 players to watch out for in Women's Premier League 2024
The tournament's second season looks to be just as intriguing as its first, with five franchises featuring notable players from the world of cricket.
Smriti Mandhana (Photo/X)
NEW DELHI: The second edition of the Women's Premier League (WPL) is set to start from Friday with defending champions Mumbai Indians facing last year's finalists Delhi Capitals in an opening match at M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru.
The tournament's second season looks to be just as intriguing as its first, with five franchises featuring notable players from the world of cricket.
Ahead of the WPL 2024, let's take a look at the players who can make an impact in the upcoming edition.
Smriti Mandhana (Royal Challengers Bangalore)
RCB captain Smriti Mandhana would seek to show off her skills in the forthcoming season after having a lacklustre campaign in 2023. Mandhana scored a pitiful 149 runs at a mere 18.62 in eight games. She scored 37 on the top, but her strike rate was a miserable 111.19. She has 3,104 runs at 27.46 for the Indian women's cricket team in 128 matches.
Tahlia McGrath (UP Warriorz)
In the WPL 2023, Australian sensation Tahlia McGrath was the UP Warriorz's shining light with the bat. She scored 302 runs at 50.33, the most for the team with four outstanding half-centuries. McGrath will continue to be an essential member of the team this season. McGrath has 900 runs at 42.85 in WT20Is. In addition, she has 17 wickets at 21.70.
Meg Lanning (Delhi Capitals)
DC captain Meg Lanning was the highest run scorer in the last edition of WPL with 345 runs from nine matches at a whopping 49.28. Lanning hammered the most fours in the tourney (50). The Aussie Women's legend owns 3,405 runs in WT20Is at 36.61 (SR: 116.37). Lanning owns two tons and 15 fifties.
Hayley Matthews (Mumbai Indians)
In the first WPL 2023, Hayley Matthews had a fantastic performance, taking 16 wickets in 10 games. With a best of 3/5, she grabbed four three-wicket hauls. At 30.11 in the WPL 2023, the West Indies player also made 271 runs.
Sophie Ecclestone (UP Warriors)
UP Warriorz's star Sophie Ecclestone will want to repeat her phenomenal performance from the previous season. Ecclestone finished the previous season with 16 scalps at 14.68 from nine games. She took two three-wicket hauls at an economy rate of 6.61. Ecclestone has 109 scalps at an average of 15.03 in 76 WT20Is for England.