Aakash Chopra believes the UP Warriorz have assembled a formidable squad for the Women’s Premier League (WPL) 2023. He reckons their high-profile recruit Deepti Sharma will prove to be India’s most valuable player at the end of the tournament.
The Warriorz spent their entire available purse of ₹12 crore to pick 16 players, including six foreign professionals, at the WPL auction in Mumbai earlier this month. Deepti (₹2.6 crore) was the only player for whom they paid more than two crores.
On the show “AakashVani” on JioCinema, Chopra reflected on the UP Warriorz team. The former Indian opener has high expectations of Deepti Sharma, saying:
“We were all a little skeptical about what kind of team they would make because they had taken over a franchise for the first time. But they have made a good team.”
“First of all, if it’s an UP team and you have a player called Deepti Sharma, who comes from Agra, it can’t get any better than that.
“Between Harmanpreet Kaur, Smriti Mandhana and Deepti Sharma, I personally believe that when the tournament is over, the most valuable Indian player will be Deepti Sharma. She bowls, bats, fields and has the ability to win matches for the team. She is a phenomenal player.”
Chopra added that the Lucknow-based franchise has picked a full team, explaining:
“I see a lot of strengths in this team. If I’m talking about their bowling, you’d say they’ve put together a good bowling line-up and if I’m talking about their batting, you’d say it’s an incredible batting line-up.”
I expected Deepti Sharma to lead UP Warriorz. #WPL
The UP Warriorz recently appointed Alyssa Healy as their captain for WPL 2023. The decision took some cricket pundits by surprise as they expected Deepti to become the team’s first captain.
“They have Alyssa Healy as their goalie” – Aakash Chopra on the UP Warriorz’s hitting and bowling power
Aakash Chopra also noted that the UP Warriorz have a formidable top four in their hitting lineup, explaining:
“They have Alyssa Healy as a goalie. Along with her, they can have Kiran Navgire as a starter. They’ll hit you from both ends if they open. After that, Deepti Sharma could hit third and Tahlia McGrath at No. 4. She’s a phenomenal player: bats and bowling.”
The reputable commentator added that they have a destructive hitter in the form of Grace Harris in the lower-middle order, noting:
“At No. 5 you may have Grace Harris. We have put Grace Harris as a pure batsman and she took two wickets recently against Sri Lanka in the [Women’s T20] World Cup.
“He makes amazing catches and the kind of sixes he hits, if he hits a six on Wankhede, the ball will go and land on Marine Drive.”
Chopra acknowledges that opposition teams might have a hard time scoring runs against the UP Warriorz bowling attack, stating:
“If you have Sophie Ecclestone, Deepti Sharma, a bowler in the form of Devika Vaidya, another bowler in the form of Tahlia McGrath and then Rajeshwari Gayakwad, Parshavi Chopra, Anjali Sarvani, Lauren Bell and Shabnim Ismail, who will score races against them?”
Despite their numerous strengths, Chopra feels the lack of a No. 6 or No. 7 hitter might be the UP Warriorz’s only weakness heading into the tournament. However, he added that they will make up for that deficiency with his powerful bowling attack, which he called the best in the tournament.
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