Keep it simple and don’t try to overdo things: Harmanpreet’s mantra ahead of WPL opener against Capitals

The Women’s cricket motion will return with the second season of the Women’s Premier League, which begins on Friday right here at M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru.

Mumbai Indians, the reigning champion, will face Delhi Capitals in its first sport of the season. Ahead of the repeat conflict of the WPL 2023 ultimate, Capitals captain Meg Lanning and Mumbai captain Harmanpreet Kaur addressed the media.

While talking about Delhi’s preparation, Lanning mentioned, “Our preparations have been great. We had some time this year to get together as a squad, and there have also been some camps throughout the year, which has resulted in some really good improvements from everyone.

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“We have a full squad now. Annabel Sutherland arrived yesterday, so we got everyone in together. We’ve had some good training sessions and match simulations to give people in the middle a better idea of what their role might be,” Lanning defined.

Unlike the earlier season, this time, all groups had ample time to place up a camp forward of the 2024 marketing campaign.

It has been a really easy transition into the squad, and everybody is worked up to take part within the match once more. I’m excited to begin the match tomorrow night time in opposition to Mumbai. They’ve received some unimaginable gamers led by Harman and received some good depth as properly. We count on some robust competitors from them,” mentioned Lanning on their opponents.

Lanning additionally heaped reward on new signing Annabel Sutherland. She mentioned, “Annabel has matured on and off the pitch in the last year to become an extremely valuable member of any team on which she plays. She has some serious power with the bat and can play multiple roles depending on the game situation. She will be in the middle of the lineup as he has the ability to come in and finish the innings.”

FILE- Delhi Capitals skipper Meg Lanning in motion throughout WPL 2023.
| Photo Credit:
EMMANUAL YOGINI/The Hindu

The Delhi Capitals skipper confirmed that South African star all-rounder Marizanne Kapp will return to motion after lacking out on the Test in opposition to Australia resulting from sickness.

“She looks good. She trained yesterday and appears to be doing quite well. She’ll be here again tonight to train, and everything is going well. We expect her to be available to play tomorrow,” she said.

Harmanpreet, in the meantime, appeared relaxed forward of the match. She mentioned, “We are not expecting too much from ourselves and are not trying to overdo things. We want to keep things simple and just relax, be in the moment, and continue doing the right things, as we did last year.

“We had a camp in Mumbai at our home ground, where we played practice games to try out new combinations and give everyone an equal chance,” she added.

MI has roped in out-and-out pacer Shabnim Ismail to strengthen the bowling division.

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“She is a great player and has done well for her country and whichever leagues she plays for. She brings in a lot of experience and is someone who can bowl at good pace, and that’s what we have been looking for. Last year, Issy Wong gave us a lot of balance, and now this year, we have another option in Shabnim. Her presence gives us that extra cushioning in bowling,” she mentioned.

Speaking about one other new addition to the squad this yr, Amandeep Kaur, Harmanpreet mentioned, “I’ve not seen some other lady cricketer who bowls left-arm wrist spin. She is an efficient choose for us. You want selection in T20 cricket and typically the batters get used to your common bowlers.