Women's Cricket
WPL: Wrong replay in DRS, bails that don't fall as Mumbai Indians beat UP Warriorz in eventful match
The first major controversy the WPL struck on Sunday as Mumbai Indians defeated UP Warriorz by 8 wickets.
Sophie Ecclestone (second from right) in action during the WPL (BCCI)
The first major controversy of the inaugural Women's Premier League (WPL) struck on Sunday in the clash between Mumbai Indians and UP Warriorz.
In the fifth over of Mumbai Indians' chase, their opener Hayley Matthews was given out by the third umpire in a controversial call before better sense prevailed at the Brabourne Stadium.
Matthews was initially given not-out by the on-field umpire, before the UP Warriorz bowler Sophie Ecclestone convinced her captain Alyssa Healy to take a review. What followed was the one of the most bizarre scenes you would ever witness in a cricket field.
The broadcasters allegedly played a wrong replay for the third-umpire during the DRS review. Instead of the ball hitting the bat first, the replays showed the ball brushing the batter's pads first.
The third-umpire duly adjudged Hayley Matthews out. However, the West Indian refused to budge from the crease.
The all-rounder ended up asking a review of the actual review, which the umpire agreed too. By this time, the third-umpire and the broadcasters realised that they had mistakenly played the wrong replay on the screen.
The decision was eventually overturned and Matthews was eventually allowed to carry on.
A contest filled with controversies
The Hayley Matthews review saga was not the only controversy to hit the contest between Mumbai Indians and UP Warriorz. Just minutes after this incident, the other MI opener - Yastika Bhatia, survived a DRS call for caught behind.
Looking to drive Shabnim Ismail in the first ball of the sixth over, Bhatia missed it as the ball settled in the hands of Healy behind the stumps. The Warrioz wicketkeeper and captain seemed convinced of an edge.
Even though there seemed to be bit of a sound as the ball passed the Yastika Bhatia's bat, the ultra-edge displayed nothing. The opener survived and went on to score 42 off just 27 deliveries.
Later on, Mumbai Indians skipper Harmanpreet Kaur too enjoyed her slice of luck as the bails did not fall despite the ball hitting the stumps in the 11th over of the chase.
Kaur went on to score an unbeaten 53 off 33 deliveries as Mumbai Indians eventually cruised to a 8-wicket win over the Warriorz with more than 2 overs to spare.
