Majestic batting from Nat Sciver-Brunt,  middle-overs acceleration from Hayley Matthews, and power-hitting from Harmanpreet Kaur helped Mumbai Indians post a daunting total of 213 in the Eliminator. That proved to be too much to chase down, and Mumbai’s 47-run win extended their head-to-head dominance over Gujarat Giants to 7-0 and powered them into their second WPL final in three years. On Saturday, they will face Delhi Capitals in a repeat of the 2023 finale.

Giants were without Deandra Dottin for their first knockout game in three WPLs after the allrounder hurt herself only five minutes before the toss, and was replaced by England’s Danielle Gibson. Giants didn’t do themselves any favours as they misfielded through the innings and put down four catches that cost them heavily. In the run chase, they lost their three top-scorers this season – Beth Mooney, Harleen Deol and Ashleigh Gardner – in the powerplay as Mumbai held on to their catches and effected run-outs.

Phoebe Litchfield scored a quickfire 31 off 20 balls, but once she was stumped off Amelia Kerr, Giants were all but out of the chase at 107 for 5, with the asking rate above 13 an over.

Put in to bat, Mumbai went back to opening with Yastika Bhatia, but it didn’t change her fortunes. After collecting three boundaries in her 14-ball stay during a sedate powerplay in which MI didn’t take too many risks, Bhatia pulled Gibson to midwicket to fall for 14.

The wicket brought out the in-form Sciver-Brunt, who didn’t bat an eyelid to get going alongside Matthews, who started with only 17 runs off her first 22 balls before taking off. Sciver-Brunt took the aerial route straightaway. She ended the seventh over with consecutive boundaries, which Matthews followed up by smacking three of her own off the next three balls from Priya Mishra to power the run rate past eight an over. Three of those five consecutive fours came off short deliveries, a length the Giants bowlers often bowled and got punished for.

Their sloppy fielding didn’t help either, leading to a number of boundaries. The first came in the ninth over when Sciver-Brunt drove to deep cover, where Simran Shaikh let the ball go through her. Soon after, Sciver-Brunt reverse paddled Gardner for her fifth boundary in 12 balls. Kashvee Gautam then let one through at point when Matthews cut one square. By then, Matthews had started to find her A game, and a six off Tanuja Kanwar’s short ball brought her fifty up off 36 balls, and the team’s 100 in 11 overs.

With Mumbai at 111 for 1 after 12 overs, Meghna Singh and Mishra brought some sort of balance back by conceding only 13 runs in two overs. But from the cushion of 124 for 1 with six overs to go, it was time to floor the pedal.

Harmanpreet already had her helmet on in the dugout, and was shadow-practicing her big swings while waiting for her chance. Sciver-Brunt deposited Gibson over deep midwicket and long-on to raise a 29-ball fifty. Giants, meanwhile, continued their wretched run on the field when the reliable Gardner dropped Matthews on 57 straight down the ground.

Matthews made them pay immediately, hitting Mishra for back-to-back sixes over long-on and cover with deft footwork. Such was Mumbai’s luck that even a top-edge off the next ball went for four. But that luck ran out when Matthews edged Gautam behind for 77 off 50 balls, and Mooney took a sharp catch standing up.

Harmanpreet averaged nearly 79 against Giants before this game, and the number could have fallen had Mishra held on to a catch at midwicket when she was on 1. But Mishra didn’t, and Harmanpreet became Harmonster. She went deep in the crease and opened her stance to cart the ball around, whether it was in the slot or not.

Harmanpreet started the 18th over by hammering Kanwar for 6, 4, 4 – even that sequence included a misfield – before ending the over with her trademark slog-sweep for six. That over went for 22 in all. Sciver-Brunt also got a life in the next over – sandwiched between two boundaries off Gibson – when Kanwar made a mess of a skier. Giants were punished yet again next ball, but finally ended the partnership when Litchfield caught one at deep midwicket, leaving Sciver-Brunt seven short of 500 runs this season, and three short of 1000 in the WPL overall.

Harmanpreet was gifted two balls in the slot at the start of the last over, and she happily collected sixes off both. Meghna, however, finished well, giving away just two off the next three balls before nailing a yorker that led to Harmanpreet being run out for 36.

It took only five balls for the hosts to show their superiority in the field on the night, despite the presence of dew. When Shabnim Ismail drew Mooney’s edge, Matthews leapt to her right from first slip to grab the ball with both hands. When Harleen Deol and Gibson got into a mix-up in the fifth over, 20-year-old Sanskriti Gupta put in a dive at point and hurled the ball quickly to the wicketkeeper to find Deol short. And just before the halfway mark, Gibson also fell short when attempting a second run, and her dive wasn’t enough to beat Amanjot Kaur’s flat throw from the deep.

Cricket Canada CEO Salman Khan, who was appointed in the job in January this year, has dismissed reports on his alleged arrest and release on bail on charges of theft and fraud as “completely false”. He, along with one other individual, had been charged earlier this month with theft and fraud by the Calgary Police in relation to his earlier role as president of the Calgary and District Cricket League between 2014 and 2016.

It is understood that initially the case was a civil suit, but now criminal charges have been laid.

Khan, posting on the Facebook page of Alberta Cricket Association, said: “I see many fake and self-created posts circulating around, and I want to set the record straight. First of all, these are all fake. I have never been arrested, detained, or on any bail. These claims are completely false, and those spreading these rumors will have to answer for it.

“Here’s the truth: A police complaint was filed against me more than 7 years ago. A police investigator approached me and said he wanted to hear my side of the story and see the evidence I have to defend myself. He told me that if I didn’t provide my side, he would proceed with charges. I told him I would visit after Ramadan, but he didn’t want to wait and decided to post charges without even hearing my side or my evidence.”

Khan said nothing had been proven against him in seven years, and he would keep fighting the case. “Let me make this clear: They have nothing to prove against me – in 7 years they were not able to prove anything in the civil case, and certainly not in any criminal case. I have over 21 transcripts, with the complainant even admitting that everything was false.

“I am not worried at all. I’m ready to fight just like I’ve been doing for the past 8 years.”

[Cricinfo]