Former South African fast bowler Shabnim Ismail made a remarkable start to the Women’s Premier League (WPL) 2024 at the Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru. In her tournament debut, she dismissed Delhi Capitals opener Shafali Verma early, giving the defending champions Mumbai Indians a crucial breakthrough.
Shafali Verma, who was struggling to find gaps in the field during the early powerplay, had to take risks against Shabnim Ismail’s bowling. However, Ismail’s length delivery deceived Verma’s attempt to play across the line, causing the ball to dislodge the middle stump and dismiss the opening batter.
CASTLED! 🎯
Shabnim Ismail with a spectacular delivery to claim the first wicket of Season 2 🔥🔥#TATAWPL | #MIvDC | @mipaltan pic.twitter.com/H7TBL0Klre
— Women’s Premier League (WPL) (@wplt20) February 23, 2024
Shafali Verma had a disappointing start to her innings, managing just one run from eight deliveries, signaling a poor beginning to her campaign. In the previous season, she had a mixed performance while adopting an aggressive approach. Despite scoring 252 runs in nine innings, she ranked ninth in the list of leading run-scorers, boasting an impressive strike rate of 184.
Meanwhile, Shafali is getting brutally trolled on X as fans were left disappointed with her poor performance.
Check out the reactions of fans:
The team that finished as runners-up in the first season of the tournament is looking to bounce back from their initial setback. All-rounder Alice Capsey is showing determination to challenge the Mumbai Indians bowlers and capitalize on the remaining overs of the powerplay.
Capsey, representing England, made her presence felt by hitting a couple of boundaries against her compatriot, Nat Sciver-Brunt. Currently, Delhi Capitals are at 16-1 after four overs, with Mumbai Indians deploying three bowlers thus far.
