Mumbai Indians' head coach believes they controlled the game for 18 overs, but the final 12 balls cost them the final.
Moments after the Mumbai Indians' WPL 2024 season came to an end with a five-run defeat in the Eliminator against Royal Challengers Bangalore, captain Harmanpreet Kaur described her wicket as a turning point. Head coach Charlotte Edwards agreed, but urged her to "take that shot on".
With 16 off 13, Harmanpreet danced down the track to Shreyanka Patil and holed out to long-on. From there, Mumbai could only manage 10 for 2 in the final two overs, falling short of retaining their title.
"You could see the lift [Harmanpreet's wicket] gave the RCB," Edwards said following the game. "We would equally support Harman in taking that shot on. If it goes for six, we need 12 [10] in the final two, and we'll be in control. I thought she had hit it for six.
"You simply have to trust the player to do what they believe is best in the situation. Who am I to tell Harmanpreet Kaur what she should do after her performance in this tournament? At that point, that is her shot and her strength. If she hits it for six, we'll be sitting in our seats... However, with 16 needed off two overs, we should still win the game. It was a key point in the game."
Harmanpreet had already survived a stumping opportunity off Patil's first ball of the 18th over when she charged down and swung at a tossed-up ball. Patil, however, outfoxed her India skipper four balls later.
"For 18 overs of the game we controlled it, we just didn't control the last 12 balls of the game and ultimately that cost us a finals' spot," Edwards went on to say. "We would have taken 135 at the start of the game, given the short boundary on that [off] side. We have to give credit to RCB because they fought hard and never gave up. The game may be won or lost by small margins at times; if Harman hits that six, we win. Unfortunately, it was not to happen tonight. It's very frustrating and difficult for the guys. They will relive those events for many years.
Edwards also praised Harmanpreet's captaincy and her ability to bring out the best in her players.
"She is quite peaceful. "She is very quiet," Edwards explained. "She doesn't speak very much. But when she does speak, it is well worth listening to. That's why I enjoy working with her. She is really good around the players, and it is unfortunate that our tournament ended the way it did. You can kind of deal with it when you haven't performed well. But I believe we performed well today, as we corrected many of our mistakes from the previous day. But it wasn't quite good enough, so our tournament ended."
With 16 off 13, Harmanpreet danced down the track to Shreyanka Patil and holed out to long-on. From there, Mumbai could only manage 10 for 2 in the final two overs, falling short of retaining their title.
"You could see the lift [Harmanpreet's wicket] gave the RCB," Edwards said following the game. "We would equally support Harman in taking that shot on. If it goes for six, we need 12 [10] in the final two, and we'll be in control. I thought she had hit it for six.
"You simply have to trust the player to do what they believe is best in the situation. Who am I to tell Harmanpreet Kaur what she should do after her performance in this tournament? At that point, that is her shot and her strength. If she hits it for six, we'll be sitting in our seats... However, with 16 needed off two overs, we should still win the game. It was a key point in the game."
Harmanpreet had already survived a stumping opportunity off Patil's first ball of the 18th over when she charged down and swung at a tossed-up ball. Patil, however, outfoxed her India skipper four balls later.
"For 18 overs of the game we controlled it, we just didn't control the last 12 balls of the game and ultimately that cost us a finals' spot," Edwards went on to say. "We would have taken 135 at the start of the game, given the short boundary on that [off] side. We have to give credit to RCB because they fought hard and never gave up. The game may be won or lost by small margins at times; if Harman hits that six, we win. Unfortunately, it was not to happen tonight. It's very frustrating and difficult for the guys. They will relive those events for many years.
Edwards also praised Harmanpreet's captaincy and her ability to bring out the best in her players.
"She is quite peaceful. "She is very quiet," Edwards explained. "She doesn't speak very much. But when she does speak, it is well worth listening to. That's why I enjoy working with her. She is really good around the players, and it is unfortunate that our tournament ended the way it did. You can kind of deal with it when you haven't performed well. But I believe we performed well today, as we corrected many of our mistakes from the previous day. But it wasn't quite good enough, so our tournament ended."
Captain Harmanpreet Kaur wore a dejected look after the loss
Following Harmanpreet's dismissal, S Sajana was stumped while attempting to face Sophie Molineux, while Pooja Vastrakar missed a legspinner from Asha Sobhana and was also dismissed in the same manner. Amelia Kerr, batting at No. 5, remained unbeaten on 27 off 25, but Mumbai failed to score a single boundary in the final three overs. It was Mumbai's second loss in a run-chase in two seasons of the WPL, after 11 tries.
"For some of these players, we quite quickly forget, someone like Sajana has only played domestic cricket," Edwards said of the less-experienced players' learnings. "This is the largest stage these players play on. This is the WPL semi-finals. Pressure takes its toll, which is why you want your best players present at the end of the game. It was not to happen today. The players will benefit from this experience, but it will not be easy because we lost a game that we should have won. The players in the locker room are hurting right now, but they will undoubtedly learn from this and grow stronger."
Edwards did not believe the lower-order's lack of playing time in the middle contributed to the defeat.
"They have all got opportunities this season. Sajana opened the batting the other day. So they have plenty of batting practice. They've all taken some time out in the middle. That is not why we lost today. Again, we did not play the last 12 balls as well as we could have. I'm pleased of the squad; we fought back effectively with the ball and had control with the bat."
"For some of these players, we quite quickly forget, someone like Sajana has only played domestic cricket," Edwards said of the less-experienced players' learnings. "This is the largest stage these players play on. This is the WPL semi-finals. Pressure takes its toll, which is why you want your best players present at the end of the game. It was not to happen today. The players will benefit from this experience, but it will not be easy because we lost a game that we should have won. The players in the locker room are hurting right now, but they will undoubtedly learn from this and grow stronger."
Edwards did not believe the lower-order's lack of playing time in the middle contributed to the defeat.
"They have all got opportunities this season. Sajana opened the batting the other day. So they have plenty of batting practice. They've all taken some time out in the middle. That is not why we lost today. Again, we did not play the last 12 balls as well as we could have. I'm pleased of the squad; we fought back effectively with the ball and had control with the bat."
Edwards praised Patil, who took 2 for 16 in her four overs, and mentioned several Indian players who impressed her this season.
"I admired Gujarat's opening bowler, Shabnam Shakil. I think she did beautifully despite her young age of 16. Titas (Sadhu) from Delhi... I think the fast bowlers really jump out to me, and I believe that is something India will consider moving ahead.
"I admired Gujarat's opening bowler, Shabnam Shakil. I think she did beautifully despite her young age of 16. Titas (Sadhu) from Delhi... I think the fast bowlers really jump out to me, and I believe that is something India will consider moving ahead.
"Shreyanka Patil, I admire the way she plays cricket. She approaches the wicket, and you always feel like you're in a struggle with her. Yastika [Bhatia] for us, I believe she has a bright future. More ladies would be inspired to play the game as [the WPL] becomes more widely known in India.
