WPL 2025: Poor fielding dampens an exciting season

Even as she struggled for timing, the swashbuckling opener was dropped twice by the UP Warriorz during her 30-ball stay. Add to that, the two stumping opportunities fluffed by Uma Chetry and Shafali was possibly the luckiest person in Bengaluru in the evening.

Luckily for the Warriorz, Shafali failed to take advantage of the chances she was blessed with.

But unfortunately, this is a part of a much larger problem in the 2025 Women’s Premier League – sub-par fielding.

Just earlier in the day, Chinelle Henry was dropped when she was batting on 13 off six deliveries. The West Indian all-rounder went on to hit the joint fastest WPL half-century, reaching the mark off 18 deliveries.

Henry’s knock was pretty much the difference between the two sides as the Warriorz romped home by 33 runs against the Capitals despite missing as many as six wicket opportunities – catches and stumpings – in the field.

The Warriorz, however, were not so lucky a few days prior. They had lost to the Capitals by seven wickets as they chased down 167 with a ball to spare.

The Warriorz had then dropped three catches – Shafali, Annabel Sutherland, and Marizanne Kapp. All three of them ended up playing crucial innings in the chase as Warriorz fell to their second loss in as many matches.

These are few examples of the countless catches which have gone down so far in just over a week since the third edition of the league started.

The five teams have combined to drop as many as 28 catches in just eight matches. A whopping 23 out of those have happened in the first six matches held at the Kotambi Stadium in Vadodara.

While dew played a major role in Vadodara, with all the matches won by teams batting second, it can’t really be an excuse to the poor catching standards in the tournament.

The two matches in Bengaluru have seen lesser dew comparatively and the standards haven’t really improved.

Moreover, its not just Indian domestic players who have struggled to hold on to catches. The likes of Laura Wolvaardt, Sophie Ecclestone, Alana King, Chinelle Henry and others have also put down chances on various occasions.

Besides, its not just the catching which has been an area of concern. The ground fielding hasn’t been up to the mark either with misfields being a constant worry for majority of the teams.

With the second leg of the league already underway in Bengaluru and the points table ever so close, fielding could well be the biggest differentiator on who lifts the trophy and who finishes with the wooden spoon.