Yes. We have done it! We are into the FINAL of the Women’s Premier League (WPL). We have beaten the UP Warriorz by 72 runs to set a date with Delhi Capitals on Sunday (March 26). It was a stellar all-round performance from our girls. Like always, a cool, calm, and collected effort to clean things up.

After the match, the star performer of the day, Issy Wong, who bagged the first-ever hat-trick for the franchise, addressed the media in a presser.

Talking about the win, Wong said, “There are only positive things from our group. We had a team meeting with Mrs. Ambani a couple of nights ago. We spoke about how we wanted to go about it (Eliminator). Not necessarily what we wanted to do but how we are going to do it. There were only positive words about playing with lots of energy. We were very much focused on this game.”

“I think playing the Eliminator is a good thing because there is a long gap between the last group game and the final. I think we have been able to get momentum in the last couple of group games. Hopefully, we will be able to carry on the same in the final.”

Issy created history as she became the first player for Mumbai Indians to record a hat-trick. On being quizzed about the hat-trick ball, she said, “I guess I made a conscious effort just to make sure I execute it. I think there have been a few moments in the past where I have been in similar situations and have been too excited to be able to focus on execution. I was trying to be quite calm and clear at the end of my mark, and what am I going to bowl.”

 “When I bowl 24 balls, I look at how many balls I would like to have another go at. So how many did I not execute? That shows whether I had a good or bad day with the ball. I try and be quite levelled because if I can be a bit levelled when it is not going well, and a bit levelled when it is going well, then maybe I will be in an alright place if it evens out.”

It was a comprehensive win for us against the Warriorz. Our batters did the job early in the day and gave our bowlers enough runs to defend. She agreed.

“In the last five overs, we were talking about getting a minimum of 170, and if we are having a good day, then let’s try and get 180 or above it. Pooja came in and provided that little bit of spark, in the end, to push the total to 180 and over.”

 “We have done both ways. We have chased and defended in this tournament. We definitely have got the belief that whatever happens at the toss, we will not let that affect us. It was the same pitch where we played our first match. Batting first went well for us then, and so did it today.”