WPL Eliminator: Gujarat up against the odds versus heavyweights Mumbai Indians

It doesn't get more David and Goliath than this. History, numbers, and the odds are skewed in Mumbai Indians' favour against Gujarat Giants come the WPL 2025 Eliminator on Thursday at the Brabourne Stadium.

One of the strongest teams in the competition, on paper and on field, MI have made it to the knockouts of each of the three editions so far. Each time they've finished second in the points table behind Delhi Capitals. So, for a third straight time they're in a game as high-stakes as an Eliminator compared to GG, who've made it past the group stage for the first time. Unlike the first season, where Mumbai went on to clinch the title, it was a resurgent Royal Challengers Bengaluru that halted their match last season. This time, they're up against a similarly peaking-at-the-right-time Giants.

Incidentally, each of the three teams in the knockouts qualified nice and early with at least a game in hand each, and incidentally all three then went on to lose their respective final game of round-robin phase. For GG, that game was against MI two nights ago at the same venue and they'd want to set the record straight in this re-match in their bid to make the title clash for the first time, where DC awaits - the team they beat comprehensively in its last league game.

Their opening combination was a bit of a musical chair with pace-bowling allrounder Kashvee Gautam, who was the latest to run away and join the circus, but the Giants' hand was forced by the lack of a solid opening stand. Beth Mooney has had four different opening partners in eight games, and in each of the innings the first wicket has fallen inside the PowerPlay. However, despite Mooney's (231) own hot-and-cold season, she's led the batting charge alongside skipper Ash Gardner (235) and Harleen Deol (224). Deol's match-winning 70* against DC failed to get her the batting promotion despite ample experimentation from the GG camp on that front, but in a do-or-die game, GG would know better than to be unconventionalists.

MI, on the other hand, may not have experimented as much but they did separate their most successful opening pair by demoting Yastika Bhatia down the order after a lean patch this season. The move to open with Amelia Kerr hasn't clicked in the two games either though. Their batting remains heavily reliant on the Orange Cap holder Nat Sciver-Brunt (416) and their peerless skipper Harmanpreet Kaur (200) despite the 200+ run gap between their respective tallies.

It's on the bowling front that MI may enjoy a slight edge over GG in the knockout at the Brabourne where they spinners have enjoyed far more success, bagging 17 wickets in the two games as compared to the 8 that went to pace. With table-topping 14 wickets each, Hayley Matthews and Amelia Kerr have stepped up for MI who are missing a crucial cog of their setup in Pooja Vastrakar this season. On the other hand, shouldering the responsbility for GG is Gautam (10 wickets) with potent swing-bowling and medium-pace of the experienced Deandra Dottin (9) with skipper Gardner not too far behind (8 wickets).

Over the years, the two teams have been involved in contests as lopsided as the first-ever game of the competition history in the DY Patil Stadium, and as thrilling as the come-from-behind chase in Delhi last year where Harmanpreet Kaur pulled off the impossible of 72 required in last-five. Mumbai Indians have won each of the six games between the two sides across the three editions of the tournament so far, and GG would take the field on Thursday knowing there couldn't be a better time to flip that narrative for good.

When: Thursday, March 13 at 7:30 PM IST

Where: Brabourne Stadium, Mumbai

What to expect: If the two leagues games on consecutive nights, and the first edition of the season that was partly played on these tracks, is any indication, the knockouts are going to be high-scoring affairs. It's only a small sample size this year at the CCI, but captains have continued to opt to chase here as well but succeeded in neither of the two attempts.

Team News

Mumbai Indians: Despite the loss to RCB a night ago, Mumbai are likely to stick with the same combination for the knockout game.

Probable XI: Hayley Matthews, Amelia Kerr, Nat Sciver-Brunt, Harmanpreet Kaur (C), Amanjot Kaur, Yastika Bhatia (wk), Sajeevan Sajana, G Kamalini, Sanskriti Gupta, Shabnim Ismail, Parunika Sisodia

Gujarat Giants: They may be far from settling in on an opening combination, but have finally found their strongest XI on paper that covers all bases. Expect GG to go in unchanged - barring any injury concerns - from their last game.

Probable XI: Beth Mooney (wk), Kashvee Gautam, Harleen Deol, Ashleigh Gardner (C), Phoebe Litchfield, Deandra Dottin, Bharti Fulmali, Simran Shaikh, Tanuja Kanwar, Meghna Singh, Priya Mishra

Did you know?

- MI's international spin duo of Amelia Kerr (13) and Hayley Matthews (11) have been a real thorn in the flesh for GG, accounting for 47% of the wickets MI bowlers have bagged against them in six games across seasons.

- Harmanpreet averages 44.6 against her GG counterpart Ash Gardner, having scored 223 runs against her at a strike-rate of 163.97 in 27 innings. The MI skipper averages 78.75 against GG overall with an unmatched tally of 315 runs, four half-centuries included in six outings.

- Sciver-Brunt (458) and Harmanpreet (406) are the leading run-scorers at the venue, followed closely by GG captain Gardner (387).