Mumbai Indians trounce Gujarat Giants in WPL again, clinch playoff berth
Mumbai, Mar 14: Mumbai Indians' juggernaut continued in the Women's Premier League here on Tuesday as the Harmanpreet Kaur-led team stormed to their fifth win in a row, crushing Gujarat Giants by 55 runs.
MI thus clinched a playoff berth with three matches still remaining.
After making a thumping start to the inaugural WPL against Gujarat Giants with a massive 143-run win at the DY Patil Stadium, Mumbai Indians once again got the better of their opponents with a comprehensive all-round show at the Brabourne Stadium.
Gujarat Giants, who stuttered to a fourth loss in five matches and remained on the penultimate spot in the five-team points table, made 107/9 in 20 overs chasing 163 on a pitch that had something for all parties.
In their previous meeting, Gujarat were bundled out for 64 in 15.1 overs in a chase of 208.
Hayley Matthews made up for her failure with the bat to return with 4-0-24-3 while leg-spinner Amelia Kerr bagged 2/18 to fuel Mumbai's yet another impressive win in front of a partisan crowd.
Also producing an all-round show for Mumbai was Nat Sciver-Brunt, who returned 4-0-21-3 after scoring a vital 36 off 31 balls studded with five fours and a six.
While each of Mumbai's overseas bowlers were among wickets, India's uncapped Saika Ishaque remained wicketless in her 4-0-20-0.
Mumbai Indians looked steady but not sure of a strong total at the halfway mark in their innings after being asked to bat first, having scored 64 for one in 10 overs.
However, captain Harmanpreet Kaur smashed a 30-ball 51 laced with seven fours and two sixes, her blitz powering Mumbai Indians to a challenging 162/8.
Yastika Bhatia (44) and Sciver-Brunt did well to consolidate, adding 74 for the second wicket.
After a sedate first half, Mumbai Indians went the aggressive route to add 98 runs in the last 10 overs.
In the second half, Mumbai Indians made a terrific start with Sciver-Brunt striking on the first ball, trapping the in-form Sophie Dunkley, who had struck 65 in her last outing at this venue.
Sabbhineni Meghana showed initial promise with some cracking boundaries, but perished for 16 off Hayley Matthews in the sixth over after a brief 21-run stand with Harleen Deol.
Matthews struck again three balls later, removing Annabel Sutherland for a four-ball duck to leave Gujarat tottering at 34/3 at the end of the powerplay.
With that, Matthews (9) moved up to the second spot in the list of bowlers with the most wickets, surpassing Delhi Capitals' Shikha Pandey (8) and Sophie Ecclestone (8) of the UP Warriorz.
Gujarat Giants not only struggled to get off the blocks but also lost wickets in heaps. After Isabelle Wong trapped Harleen Deol (22) leg-before before the first strategic break, Ashleigh Gardner (8) was dismissed right after resumption by Kerr, who also accounted for Dayalan Hemlatha (6).
Among the bright spots for Gujarat Giants was captain Sneh Rana's spell of 4-0-17-1 and a 19-ball 20 which helped stem the fall of wickets for a short while.
Kaur lost her fourth toss on the trot in WPL as Gujarat Giants captain Sneh Rana elected to field while making two changes. Laura Wolvaardt and Georgia Wareham made way for Dunkley and Sutherland, whereas Mumbai Indians remained unchanged.
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Informing Pakistan ahead of Operation Sindoor was a crime: Rahul Gandhi on Jaishankar's 'admission'
New Delhi, May 17 (PTI): Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Saturday hit out at the government for "informing" Pakistan about targeting terror infrastructure as part of Operation Sindoor, saying it was a crime and asking who had authorised it.
In a post on X, Gandhi questioned External Affairs Minister (EAM) S Jaishankar for publicly admitting that the government of India (GOI) had informed Pakistan of the action and asked how many aircraft the Indian Air Force lost as a result.
"Informing Pakistan at the start of our attack was a crime. EAM has publicly admitted that GOI did it. Who authorised it? How many aircraft did our air force lose as a result?" said Gandhi, the leader of opposition in the Lok Sabha.
He also shared an undated video of Jaishankar saying India had informed Pakistan of the action against terror infrastructure on its soil.
Jaishankar can be heard saying in the video, "At the start of the operation, we had sent a message to Pakistan, saying, 'We are striking at terrorist infrastructure and we are not striking at the military.'"
"So the military has the option of standing out and not interfering in this process. They chose not to take that good advice," the minister can be heard saying in the clip.
The Press Information Bureau (PIB), however, has debunked claims that Jaishankar had said India informed Pakistan ahead of Operation Sindoor. In a post on X, the PIB's Fact Check Unit said the minister had not made any such statement and that he was being misquoted.
Operation Sindoor was the Indian offensive against terror camps in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) following the April 22 terror attack in Pahalgam.
Informing Pakistan at the start of our attack was a crime.
— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) May 17, 2025
EAM has publicly admitted that GOI did it.
1. Who authorised it?
2. How many aircraft did our airforce lose as a result? pic.twitter.com/KmawLLf4yW
