Women’s T20 Challenge 2020: 5 cricketers who impressed the most
The recently concluded Women’s T20 Challenge saw a lot of exciting cricket being played amongst the finest women cricketers from all over the world. The tournament provided the much-needed entertainment to the fans of women’s cricket and an excellent opportunity for the players too, to get their affairs in order before the international matches get back on course as the world recovers from the pandemic. There were a few players though, whose performances stood out from their peers and they ended up having an unparalleled impact on their team’s run in this tournament. So, let us have a look at the 5 most impressive players of the Women’s T20 Challenge 2020.
5. Smriti Mandhana (Trailblazers)
#Trailblazers Captain @mandhana_smriti is adjudged Player of the Match for her fine knock of 68 in the Final of #JioWomensT20Challenge 2020 ?? pic.twitter.com/dTiArStaIC
— IndianPremierLeague (@IPL) November 9, 2020
The ace Indian women’s team batter, Smriti Mandhana took the stage of the Women’s T20 Challenge by a storm as she smacked 107 runs in the three matches that she played in the tournament. Smriti who was also tasked with leading her team, the Trailblazers, made sure that she led from the front by example and scored runs whenever necessary for her team. In the all-important final match, she hit 68 runs and helped her team get past the finish line successfully, and lay their hands on the coveted trophy.
4. Radha Yadav (Supernovas)
The Supernovas’ top bowler, Radha Yadav, ended the tournament placed at the pole position in the wicket taker’s list of the tournament. The 20-year-old bowler made her impact with the ball as she picked wickets left and right and made sure that at no time, matches went completely out of the hands of her team. She took as many as 8 wickets in 3 matches while maintaining an economy rate of 5.91 runs per over and a bowling average of 8.87. Her brilliance with the ball is also shown in her best figures, which are 5 wickets for just 16 runs.
3. Sophie Ecclestone (Trailblazers)
A 2⃣-wicket maiden from Sophie Ecclestone as she picks the keys wickets of Mithali Raj and Veda Krishnamurthy ??#VELvTBL #JioWomensT20Challenge pic.twitter.com/7dH902zr5q
— IndianPremierLeague (@IPL) November 5, 2020
Another entrant in the list from the tournament winning team, Sophie Ecclestone’s bowling came in as a spectacle to behold through the course of the tournament. She ended the competition with 5 wickets in her bag in just the three matches. She bowled tight lines and kept the flow of runs in check whenever she was bowling. At no point while she was bowling did the batters look comfortable enough to target her with the bat, and the same is reflected in her economy rate, which was just 4.92 runs per over.
2. Deepti Sharma (Trailblazers)
One of the best all-rounders of the tournament, Deepti Sharma is another Trailblazers player that made it into this list of impactful players, thanks to her all-round efforts. Deepti Sharma was as impactful with the bat as she was with the ball. She pitched in with the bat whenever it was needed by her team and picked wickets with the ball too. She ended with 52 runs and 3 wickets to her name in three matches, which are enough to show the impact that she had in the successful run of her team in this tournament.
1. Chamari Athapaththu (Supernovas)
The highest run-getter of the tournament Chamari Athapaththu seemed to have come in already prepared and set, in every game she played in. She displayed finesse with the bat and scored runs at will that left everyone in awe and even the bowlers, at times, would have silently praised the batting show that she put up during her stay at the crease. From her very first game, she looked to be in good touch with the bat and as the tournament ended, she had 117 runs to her name, in 3 matches at a strike rate of 121.87 and average of 39.00.