After a brilliant performance against Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) at the Brabourne Stadium on Monday, March 6, Ravichandran Ashwin has chosen Mumbai Indians (MI) all-rounder Hayley Matthews as the Most Valuable Player (MVP) in the ongoing Women’s Premier League (WPL 2023)! Matthews’ 3/28 figures included crucial wickets of Smriti Mandhana (23), Heather Knight (duck) and Richa Ghosh (28), helping MI bowl out RCB for 155 in 18.4 overs.
Earlier, he had tweeted: “Great start to the campaign for Mumbai, but how Hayley Mathews was sold for base price at the auction will remain a mystery. #WPL2023 #basebuy #steal. She bowls some quality off-spin and could well be an MVP.”
MI recently acquired Matthews for a mere 40 lakhs in the 2023 WPL Auction, despite her impressive T20I credentials. She has amassed 1581 runs and taken 78 wickets from 82 matches.
Hayley Matthews was a driving force for MI, scoring an unbeaten 77 off 38 balls with a strike rate of 202.63, 13 boundaries and a six in their nine-wicket victory over RCB on Monday. Her unbeaten 114-run partnership with Natalie Sciver-Brunt for the second wicket played a big role in the result. Yastika Bhatia also contributed with 23 runs, while Preeti Bose picked up the lone wicket for RCB. RCB were eliminated after deciding to bat first, finishing with 155 in 18.4 overs. Smriti Mandhana (23), Sophie Devine (16), and Richa Ghosh (28) got off to a good start but could not expand their scores. Saika Ishaque and Amelia Kerr both contributed with two wickets each, with Matthews taking the most at 3 and Natalie Sciver bagged 1 wicket too.
Matthews recognised MI for allowing her to play her shots on the post-match show, expressing, “There wasn’t much difference, was able to bat a bit longer today, the freedom in this MI team has given me plenty of confidence. They’re going well at the moment, watching the ball nicely, and the ball is coming on nicely.”
She continued:
“They did put me under pressure in the 1st over, but it was nice to come back well. We’ve so many match-winners in the team, and Harman is leading us well.”
