Star India cricketer reflects on Harleen Deol’s match-winning knock, says, ‘Not just an innings, it was…’

Harleen Deol led the charge with an unbeaten 64 as UP Warriorz secured their first victory of WPL 2026, beating Harmanpreet Kaur-led Mumbai Indians

WPL 2026, Harleen Deol, UP Warriorz, Mumbai Indians, Saba Karim, Deep Dasgupta, Chloe Tryon, Harmanpreet Kaur, UP Warriorz vs Mumbai Indians, Abhishek Nayar, Meg Lanning, — Harleen Deol

New Delhi: UP Warriorz registered their first win of the season, beating Mumbai Indians with a composed chase of 162. Harleen Deol led the charge with an unbeaten 64, delivering a statement performance in the aftermath of her retire-out controversy. Speaking on JioHotstar’s ‘Match Centre Live’, cricket expert Deep Dasgupta and Saba Karim showered praise on Deol’s elegant knock and highlighted how the victory could revive UP Warriorz’s campaign while adding to the tournament’s competitiveness.

Deep Dasgupta pointed to Harleen Deol’s graceful response, delivered just a day after she was controversially retired out, “Twenty-four hours makes a huge difference. Harleen Deol’s knock of 64 runs against Mumbai Indians showed that. After being retired out by UP Warriorz’s head coach Abhishek Nayar last night against Delhi Capitals, this innings against Mumbai showed her hunger. It was phenomenal. It was a sublime piece of batting.”

“Usually, after something like that, a player gets angry and tries to hit every ball for four or six. But Harleen did not play a single shot in anger. Every shot was beautifully timed and elegant. It was not just an innings, it was a statement.”

Deep Dasgupta on the importance of UP Warriorz

Deep Dasgupta also spoke about the importance of UP Warriorz rediscovering form with a crucial win over Mumbai Indians, “You never want to see teams not reach their potential. UP Warriorz have great potential with talented players. It has been about a new coach in Abhishek Nayar and a new captain in Meg Lanning finding the best way to bring them together. Now, Meg Lanning has managed that by beating Mumbai Indians. Hopefully, this is just the start for them. We will have a rematch soon, as UP faces MI again in a few days. That isn’t a bad thing because you’ve already done it. You don’t need extra planning; you just come out and aim to do the same thing again.”

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Dasgupta reflected on the simple and effective approach that drove UP Warriorz to a win over Mumbai Indians, “The points table of TATA WPL Season 4 is starting to look interesting. That’s why this game against Mumbai Indians was so important for UP Warriorz. It keeps them, and the whole tournament, alive. They got a lot of things right in this encounter. They didn’t try anything fancy, just stuck to the basics. They started with seamers and stuck with it. The run chase was clinical. Their fielding was very good, both on the outfield and with catches. They did the simple things right more often than not”

“In T20, you don’t want to overcomplicate decisions. UP’s strategy was simple, straight from the playbook, and it worked. Captain Meg Lanning, if she keeps this combination going, which they have now, UP Warriorz will be very difficult to stop.”

Saba Karim on why UP Warriorz’s win over Mumbai Indians was vital

Saba Karim also explained why UP Warriorz’s win over Mumbai Indians was vital not only for their season but also for the overall competitiveness of the WPL.

“This win against Mumbai Indians was much needed for UP Warriorz, and for the whole competition. We need more quality and a tough fight for the playoff spots, which we have seen before. This win will help the competition grow. Chasing 162 is never easy. DC struggled against a similar target earlier, so hats off to Harleen Deol and Chloe Tryon. Their 44-run partnership was match-winning. In the last match, Harleen was replaced by Chloe and it did not work, but against MI they both did the job. Chloe’s quick 27 from 11 balls was also crucial. This shows that with good communication with an affected player, like Harleen Deol, you can always make a comeback. That is what happened with UP Warriorz, thanks to both Chloe and Harleen.”