A Gujarat Giants player enters the field during the 1st match of the Women’s Premier League between Gujarat Giants and Mumbai Indians at Dr. DY Patil Sports Academy, Navi Mumbai on March 4, 2023 | Photo Credit: SPORTZPICS for IPL
Gujarat Giants has spent the most To own a Women’s Premier League team, This is because owner Adani Sportsline believes that the league has a huge potential to grow.
“It is going to be one of the best assets as far as women’s sports is concerned,” Adani Sports chief Satyam Trivedi said during an interaction here on Monday. “That’s why the kind of money we put in is 33% more than the second highest bidder.”
He said that WPL has already become a topic of discussion. “The number of people coming on the ground is encouraging,” he said. “It’s already doing well, but it will go to another level in the next two or three years.”
Trivedi believes that the WPL will encourage other women’s sports to look at similar leagues. “Sports like football and kabaddi, for example,” he said. “And not just in India, but around the world.”
However, the Giants haven’t had a great time on the field so far. It has won just one game and lost three. Team mentor and former India captain Mithali Raj said it was not the start the team wanted.
“The tournament is still open,” she said. We still have a chance to be in the top three. We have got some injuries.”
Captain and the team’s main batsman Beth Mooney could only bat for three balls in the league before being injured. Her former Australian teammate and now Giants coach, Rachael Haynes said she was confident of the side’s prospects.
“Our future is still in our own hands,” Haynes said. He said, ‘Our batting as a team has not been special. From our point of view, we have to make sure that we have some really good partnerships so that we can capitalize in the death overs. When you put batsmen at the death, it is difficult to shut them down.
Gujarat’s next match is against table-toppers Mumbai Indians on Tuesday.