It's no wonder Camilla Kuver can't stop smiling. After making her Champions League debut only a couple of weeks prior, the 22-year-old has just won her first and second caps for Germany, starting both games against France over the last international break to help her country qualify for the Nations League final. These would be milestones worth celebrating for any player, but they are particularly special for the Wolfsburg defender, given the incredible bad luck she has had with injuries over the past four years.

“I’m not even really sure how I handled it all,” Kuver admits. Coming into this season, Germany’s new centre-back had made just five first-team starts since tearing her ACL in November 2021, at the tender age of 18. In fact, she didn’t get onto the pitch once in the 2024-25 campaign, that her second season with Wolfsburg, the two-time European champions and the most successful club in the history of German women’s football.

But after enduring setback after setback, Kuver looks to finally be on the other side and back on track in a career that still has so much promise. After all, despite all of those injuries, her goals in football were never really gone. “They were just postponed,” she notes.

Now, as huge Champions League encounters with the likes of Chelsea, Real Madrid and, on Wednesday, Manchester United loom, Kuver has plenty of opportunity to show everyone just why she remains one of the most highly-rated young defenders in the game.

Getty ImagesInjury hell

As GOAL walks through Kuver’s injury history with her, it’s no wonder she admits there were times where there would be questions in the back of her mind asking, ‘Is it even worth it?’ After coming through the youth national teams as a talented and versatile full-back, and breaking into the Eintracht Frankfurt first team as a 17-year-old, an ACL tear during her second senior season would spark the beginning of an incredibly difficult few years.

Kuver was back on the pitch at the start of the 2022-23 campaign, only to suffer another knee injury that would keep her out for eight more months. Then, after making just five appearances during her first season at Wolfsburg, having completed a move to the German giants during her rehabilitation process, she would miss the entire 2024-25 campaign in what she describes as “definitely the toughest” part of an extremely taxing time. Having overcome cartilage damage in her knee that sidelined her for half of the year, a dislocated shoulder and a ligament injury in her foot took care of the rest.

“At some point I couldn't even take myself seriously, I feel like, because I came back from injury and then the next one came. Then I thought, 'Okay, now I'm really getting back', and then the next thing came,” Kuver tells GOAL. “Looking back on that time, I'm not even really sure how I handled it all. I just kind of did. I mean, I had to. I think that's what makes this time right now even more special.”

AdvertisementGetty ImagesFighting through

A lot of people would’ve given up had they experienced the setbacks Kuver did. Yet, aside from what she describes as the occasional “tiny questions in the back of my head”, the 22-year-old never considered quitting. Why? “Just because I love playing football,” she responds. “It's always been the greatest joy in my life.

“During rehab, I realised there's nothing that could compare and there's nothing that could give me the same kind of joy. That was something. I just wanted to be back on the field. Also, I had so many goals – for one, the national team goal. I still wanted to prove myself. I still wanted to show what I can do. That was always something, the mindset of, 'I'm not really done yet'. Even though there were all the injuries and stuff, my goals weren't gone. They were just postponed. That was definitely something that kept me going.”

Getty ImagesHelpful factors

Other factors helped, too. Kuver had several friends who were either enduring or had endured long-term setbacks like hers, meaning she could talk to people who knew exactly what she was going through.

“I've always felt it was easier to talk to people who have gone through the same thing because, of course, people are trying to support you and be empathetic, and I'm sure they can imagine just how hard it is, but it's different when you've gone through it,” she explains. “That was definitely easier for me to talk to those people with. It was very, very important, actually.”

School was a welcome distraction during her ACL recovery, while Wolfsburg’s decision to sign her when she was sidelined the following year provided a confidence boost. “It was definitely nice to hear that people saw my abilities and, despite my injuries, they thought it was worth it,” she says.

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Getty ImagesSavouring the 'special' moments

The hope now is that all of that is well behind Kuver. She speaks to GOAL as a regular starter for the team placed second in the Frauen-Bundesliga table and as someone who, last month, experienced Champions League and senior international football for the first time. The player who ranked ninth in the 2022 NXGN list of the best teenage talents in the world is reminding everyone why she generated so much hype as she broke through. And while the injuries are something she would’ve gladly done without, they have made the recent months all the more sweet.

Kuver describes playing for Germany as something she thought about during her rehab process, “because it’s not always easy to be motivated to go to rehab every single day”. “That was just one of the big goals and dreams that made it possible for me to even get through it,” she recalls. “It is a very, very special feeling. I think it's also important that I keep reminding myself that it is very special, given the journey that I've been on.”

With Major League Baseball's trade deadline a week away, the New York Yankees are looking for help in the hot corner.

Arizona Diamondbacks slugger Eugenio Suárez, who has hit a whopping 36 homers this season, is the hot name on the rumor mill. The Yankees are certainly interested—and have inquired—in bringing in his services, but they reportedly have a backup plan in the works.

According to a new report from MLB Network insider Mark Feinsand, the Yankees have interest in Colorado Rockies third baseman Ryan McMahon if they can't get a deal done for Suárez.

Suárez, 34, is slated to become a free agent after this season while the 30-year-old McMahon's current contract runs through the 2027 season. McMahon is in the midst of his ninth MLB season, all with the Rockies, and was named an All-Star last year. This season, he's slashing .219/.315/.406 with 16 homers and 35 RBIs for the MLB-worst Rockies.

The Yankees have had six different players play at least one game at third base this year: Oswald Peraza (47), Oswaldo Cabrera (33), Jazz Chisholm Jr. (29), Jorbit Vivas (12), Pablo Reyes (5) and J.C. Escarra (2). As Suárez enters the deadline on a heater and the best bat available, several teams could be willing to give up a better package than the Yankees are willing and able to offer. Although the D-Backs just got swept by the Houston Astros which bumped them 5 1/2 games back of the National League's third wild card, they could decide to keep Suárez too.

Even if he doesn't land in pinstripes, the Yankees seem zeroed in on getting help at third base ahead of the July 31 deadline.

Sometimes, you just don't have a good day at work. We've all been there. Such a day unfortunately came for future Hall of Famer Clayton Kershaw on Sunday during the Los Angeles Dodgers' game against the Milwauke Brewers. Kershaw cruised through three innings and looked to be on track towards earning a victory after the Dodgers spotted him a 3-0 lead.

But the wheels fell off in the top of the fourth inning.

The Dodgers defense let Kershaw down, committing a pair of errors that led to to the Brewers plating three runs. In the top of the fifth, Kershaw exited the game after hitting a batter, then allowing a single, after which the Dodgers committed another error.

The southpaw kept his cool on the mound in the midst of the errors but let his frustrations out when he got back to the dugout.

These have to be among the most frustrating days for a starting pitcher. The win is seemingly within the team's grasp, and then, because of circumstances out of the pitcher's hands, the lead disappears.

We feel your pain, Kershaw, we feel your pain.

لا يتعلم نادي برشلونة الإسباني من الأخطاء التي وقع بها سابقًا في بطولة دوري أبطال أوروبا، وتكرر الأمر خلال سقوطه أمام تشيلسي الإنجليزي، بمواجهة الفريقين أمس الثلاثاء.

والتقى برشلونة وتشيلسي على ملعب “ستامفورد بريدج” في لندن، الثلاثاء، ضمن مباريات مرحلة الدوري بالجولة الخامسة، ومُني الفريق الكتالوني بهزيمة بثلاثة أهداف دون مقابل.

وسلطت صحيفة “ماركا” الإسبانية الضوء في تقرير لها، على أخطاء تكررت من قبل فريق برشلونة بمنافسات دوري أبطال أوروبا، وأثرت على نتائج الفريق.

شهدت المباراة تسجيل هدف عكسي من جول كوندي في شباك برشلونة، منح تشيلسي التقدم، كما تلقى رونالد أراوخو بطاقة حمراء بعد حصوله على بطاقتين صفراوتين في نهاية الشوط الأول.

ومن بين آخر ست هزائم للفريق في دوري أبطال أوروبا، شهدت ثلاث منها طرد لاعب من برشلونة قبل نهاية الشوط الأول.

أراوخو ضد تشيلسي، تلقى بطاقته الصفراء الثانية لعرقلته كوكوريلا وكان في طريقه إلى المرمى ضد خوان جارسيا، وكان بإمكان مدافع البلوجرانا تجنب العرقلة، خاصة وهو على علم بأنه إذا تحصل على بطاقة صفراء ستكون الثانية.

اقرأ أيضًا | فليك يضطر لتغيير خطته مع لاعبي برشلونة بعد ثلاثية تشيلسي

كما كان بإمكان أراوخو تجنب البطاقة الصفراء الأولى، والتي تلقاها بسبب احتجاجه على خطأ على لامين يامال.

وفي موسم 2023/2024، تلقى أراوخو بطاقة حمراء كان من الممكن تفاديها ضد باريس سان جيرمان، حين تدخل على باركولا الذي كان في مواجهة تير شتيجن.

وبرشلونة كان متقدمًا بنتيجة 1-0 في تلك اللحظة، وكان متقدمًا بالفعل بنتيجة 3-2 في مباراة الذهاب في باريس.

أكمل برشلونة المباراة بعشرة لاعبين من الدقيقة 29، ومع أداء رائع لمبابي مهاجم باريس سان جيرمان حينها، ودع الفريق الكتالوني البطولة.

وفي الموسم التالي، تحت قيادة فليك، خسر برشلونة مباراته الأولى في دور المجموعات في موناكو، وشهدت المباراة طرد إريك جارسيا، بعد حصوله على بطاقة حمراء بعد 11 دقيقة.

كما شهد برشلونة زيادة ملحوظة في عدد البطاقات الصفراء التي يتلاقها اللاعبون، وقد أثّر ذلك سلبًا على الفريق.

Borussia Dortmund CEO Hans-Joachim Watzke has opened up about the controversy surrounding Thomas Tuchel’s exit and revealed that the 2017 team bus bomb attack played a major role in the breakdown of his relationship with the German coach. Tuchel spent two seasons with the Bundesliga club and won the DFB-Pokal in 2017 before being dismissed, a decision that Watzke says he regrets.

• Bomb attack was turning point in Tuchel's Dortmund exit

  Tuchel, who was appointed in 2015, was sacked just days after winning the DFB-Pokal. At the time, the split was believed to be due to internal tension and frustration over the club’s failure to seriously challenge Bayern. Now, Watzke says the turning point came much earlier. He explained that the bomb attack on the Dortmund team bus in April 2017 strained their relationship. The incident happened before Dortmund’s Champions League match against Monaco, and the rescheduled game was played less than 24 hours later. Tuchel publicly criticised the decision to go ahead with the game so soon after the attack, saying the players needed time to process the trauma.

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• AFP
  

  Dortmund chief says relationship with Tuchel had already broken down

  Watzke claims Tuchel's public statement did not match what was agreed internally. He says players were given a choice the night before the game, and that the situation was more complex than how it appeared from the outside.

  "I don't want to go into the details for the hundredth time. What's important to me, however, is that what was reported publicly didn't correspond to what we had discussed internally. Every player was absolutely free not to play the next day without any consequences. We met immediately after the season to discuss how things would proceed," Wazke revealed to .

  He added that once the season ended, talks were held to discuss the future, but the relationship had already broken down.

  "No one tried to find common ground. There was no real dialogue at all. After 20 minutes, it was clear: it couldn't continue."

• Watzke regrets Tuchel exit

  The Dortmund director said tensions between him and Tuchel escalated after the incident, creating a divide that became hard to repair. He believes the situation might have unfolded differently if emotions hadn’t been so high at the time.

  "Looking back: I don't think things would have come to this without the attack," the German said. "And in retrospect, I have to say: I probably wouldn't dismiss Thomas Tuchel today. But back then, we had torn each other apart so much because of this issue that things probably wouldn't have turned out well on a human level."

  Despite the friction, Watzke says he now has a good relationship with the England coach again. "Today I get along well with Thomas again. We talked things out. And I have to say: He is an outstanding coach."

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• Getty Images Sport
  

  England thriving under Tuchel

  Tuchel left Dortmund in 2017 and went on to coach Paris Saint-Germain, Chelsea and Bayern Munich before taking charge of England in 2024. He has made a strong start with the national team after a turbulent end to Gareth Southgate's tenure. The Three Lions completed their World Cup qualifying campaign unbeaten and without conceding a goal, finishing with a 2-0 win over Albania. The run has boosted early belief in Tuchel’s project as he prepares for his first major tournament with the English team.

Aston Villa have recently submitted an offer for Real Madrid’s Gonzalo Garcia, and the Spanish club’s stance on sanctioning a departure has now been revealed.

Villa have stepped up their pursuit of a new centre-forward with Ollie Watkins failing to reach his usual lofty standards in the Premier League this season, netting just one goal and receiving criticism from former Arsenal striker Ian Wright back in September.

Wright said: “As a player, I think that he should be doing more for what he’s capable of doing.

“He’s a channel runner, gets in the box, he gets on the end of things. I think he could be a lot sharper with his finishing, and I thought that’s what he’d be working on.”

Fortunately, the Villans have managed to find goals from other sources, which have propelled them up the table in recent weeks, rising to sixth after a dominant 4-0 rout of AFC Bournemouth in their final match before the international break.

That said, Watkins’ poor form is likely to still be a concern for Unai Emery, and the manager has seemingly decided to bring in another striker capable of challenging for the Englishman’s place in the starting XI.

Aston Villa submit offer for Gonzalo Garcia

According to a report from Spain, Aston Villa have offered €20m (£18m) offer for Real Madrid forward Garcia, and they are looking to finalise a deal as quickly as possible, given that the Spaniard’s value could plausibly rise as the season goes on.

Sunderland and Wolverhampton Wanderers have lodged bids of their own, so there will be competition for the 21-year-old’s signature, but a deal could be there to be done, as the Spanish club view cashing-in as an ‘attractive financial opportunity.’

As one of the first clubs to make contact with Madrid, Villa should be well-placed to get a deal done, not least because their main rivals seem to be newly-promoted Sunderland and a Wolves side at serious risk of relegation.

Hopefully, it will only be a matter of time before Watkins starts scoring again, but the 29-year-old having some healthy competition could kick him into gear, and there are signs the Real Madrid starlet could push for a starting spot.

Lauded as a “goal machine” in the media, the youngster performed remarkably well at youth level in the 2024-25 campaign, netting 26 goals in 37 games for RM Castilla, before going on to impress considerably at the Club World Cup, netting four goals for the senior side.

That said, it would be a risk to sign Garcia, given that he is yet to prove himself in the Madrid first team over a sustained period, and 21-year-old FC Porto striker Samu Aghehowa, who scored 19 league goals last season, could be an interesting alternative option.

Aston Villa fighting to sign Samu Aghehowa

Aston Villa fighting to sign Samu Aghehowa amid interest from Tottenham and Arsenal

Recent reports have indicated that Aston Villa would be keen on signing Porto forward Samu Aghehowa.

By
James O'Reilly

Nov 5, 2025

“My cricket is in my hands, and if I just keep doing my job, as and when the opportunity comes, I will do well for India.”

Srinidhi Ramanujam15-Jan-2025Arundhati Reddy wasn’t expecting to be left out of India’s white-ball squads for the home series against West Indies and Ireland, especially after taking a career-best four-wicket haul in her most recent ODI. But the fast bowler isn’t brooding over the snub; instead, she says she’s making sure she’s only focusing on what she can control: fine-tuning her skills to become the best cricketer she can be. Along the way, she says she has learned to let go of the fear of failure, and express herself whenever she’s on the field.Reddy and Shafali Verma were the high-profile absentees from India’s limited-overs squads for the West Indies and Ireland series. Reddy, who made her ODI debut against South Africa in June last year, has played five matches, the last of which was against Australia in Perth, where she picked up 4 for 26.Related

Kashvee gets maiden call-up, regulars return for ODI tri-series in Sri Lanka

Arundhati Reddy 2.0 – stronger, calmer, ready for all formats

India drop Arundhati Reddy for West Indies series

“I am not really sure what exactly happened [after the Australia tour],” Reddy said on the sidelines of the Senior Women’s One Day Challenger Trophy final in Chennai, where her side, Team A, lost to Team C. “But then again these things are not in my hands. At the end of the day, my cricket is in my hands, and if I just keep doing my job, as and when the opportunity comes, I will do well for India.”For me, all that matters is which team I am playing for and if I am doing well for them. And every time I take the field I want to win games for whichever team I play. And that has always been the way I play my cricket.”While Shafali, who was Reddy’s captain in the Challenger Trophy, finished the tournament as the highest run-getter with 414 runs in five matches at an average of 82.80, Reddy took seven wickets in five games at 24.14.”This [Challenger Trophy] was a good challenge personally for me,” she said. “Didn’t start off that well but again I think I like pressure. Every time I am put under pressure I seem to do well. So again probably a win would have been great. But it was a great final for us.”Arundhati Reddy picked up career-best figures of 4 for 26 in her most recent ODI, against Australia in Perth•Getty ImagesThat Reddy was also overlooked for the West Indies series T20Is in December also raised eyebrows. She made her T20I debut in 2018 and was dropped in 2021 before she returned to the side in 2024 on the back of an impressive WPL performance. Last year, she featured in seven T20Is and scalped ten wickets and returned an economy rate of 6.50. This included the T20 World Cup in UAE, where she finished as India’s joint-highest wicket-taker with seven wickets in four matches.How does Reddy deal with uncertainty? She revealed that a discussion with her coach Arjun Dev at the NICE Academy in Bengaluru helped her stay focused on what’s ahead and not dwell on what could have been.”The only thing that he told me was that whether the [India] tag comes or not, or whichever team that you play for, all we wanted to focus on was being the best allrounder in the world, wherever you play,” Reddy said. “Be it a club game or an India game, the focus is to become the best allrounder. Again, it’s very hard to say whether you’ll play [for India] or won’t. It’s still difficult for you as a player because there is a lot of uncertainty that comes with it.”But what motivates me is just waking up every day and trying to be the best cricketer I can be. And that’s what I want to chase. That’s what keeps me going. And also, just having the clarity that whichever team you play for, you have to win games for that team. Doesn’t matter where it is.”But I think now I’ve become responsible enough to understand. And whichever team I play for, I’m also one of the senior players. Again, it helps me a lot. Seeing things that way. Helping the other girls. I think that also gets the best out of me. That’s what I just focus on. And genuinely, I just want to focus on helping people around me. Because that gets the best out of me. So, just the focus has been on that. Rather than thinking too much about where I should be, where I could be.”That Reddy was willing to take risks for better opportunities was evident when she quit Railways (after playing there from 2017-18 to 2022-23) to move to Kerala in the 2023-24 season. She has also worked on becoming stronger and calmer over the last few years, and she feels she now approaches every tournament with clarity.’You’ll be put under pressure. You’ll have batters that will challenge you. But there’s no fear’•BCCI”I’ve been playing domestic from the time I was 12 years old,” she said. “But it’s just the past one or two years, I have felt the best that I have ever played. Again a lot of things have changed in the past two years.”I had to take some tough decisions leading up to the season last year. I think that helped me. I just have clarity and I go into the tournament with a lot of freedom. Because I had a lot to gain, nothing to lose. That helped me a lot.”Also from the last year, I have focused more on just expressing myself. Obviously, there was a lot of fear of failure when I was young. But now it’s like I don’t care if I fail.”Reddy will next be in action for Delhi Capitals in the WPL 2025 in February. With a home ODI World Cup scheduled later this year, she has been working on becoming a more potent wicket-taker as she sets sights on another comeback.”One thing I really worked on last season was attacking the stumps all the time,” she said. “Because, obviously, only if you attack the stumps, you’re going to get wickets. So, that was the main plan. The length differs depending on the batter. But be it death [overs], initial stages or the middle overs, stumps is the way to go for me. That’s my strength. And I try to do that as much as I can. So, that’s what has been, like, because I used to not do that earlier.”It was more like fourth-stump, fifth-stump bowling and just looking good economically. But my main focus from the past two years was attacking the stumps and trying to pick a lot of wickets and not be scared of getting hit. That is one key thing which I’ve been taught, that you’ll be put under pressure. You’ll have batters that will challenge you. But there’s no fear.”You’re still going to think about the positive option. And if that means you have to take a risk, you take a risk. And, again, not having the fear of failure has really helped me a lot.”

There are four double-header days scheduled, with the league stage ending on December 28

ESPNcricinfo staff03-Sep-2025

The fourth season of the ILT20 is set to begin on December 2, 2025, with defending champions Dubai Capitals set to take on Desert Vipers in a rematch of last year’s final, in Dubai.There are four double-header days scheduled, with the league stage ending on December 28. The knockout stages will begin with Qualifier 1 on December 30, followed by the Eliminator on January 1. The winner of the Eliminator will have to play Qualifier 2 on the following day, after which there will be a day’s break before the final, on January 4, 2026, in Dubai.Sharjah Warriorz and Abu Dhabi Knight Riders will begin their respective campaigns against each other on December 3, while Gulf Giants will take on MI Emirates for their first game, on December 4.The matches will be played across the Dubai International Cricket Stadium, Sharjah Cricket Stadium and the Zayed Cricket Stadium in Abu Dhabi, like previous seasons.Dubai Capitals, who have reached the last two finals, won the title in the previous season with a four-wicket win over Vipers.Before them, MI Emirates lifted the trophy in 2024 and Gulf Giants in the inaugural season in 2023.

Chelsea restored some of the pride they lost in their Champions League thumping at the hands of Barcelona last season with a creditable 1-1 draw with the Spanish giants. After a chastening 8-2 semi-final aggregate loss to Barca, the Blues had a point to prove and were on track to do that with Ellie Carpenter's piledriver. But Ewa Pajor's strike ensured the spoils were shared on Thursday.

After a bright start from the visitors, a determined Chelsea took the lead in the 16th minute when Carpenter emphatically smashed the ball into the top corner from the edge of the box. Barcelona's Pajor nearly hit back straight away when she slotted past Livia Peng, only for her effort to be ruled out for offside, but the Polish striker wouldn't be denied in the 24th minute when she fired through a crowd of bodies after the Blues failed to clear a corner. 

Barca stopper Cata Coll did well to keep out Wieke Kaptein's lofted shot following a defence-splitting pass from Erin Cuthbert and then the Netherlands international rattled the post after a neat layoff from Alyssa Thompson. Just as the hosts' grip on the contest – which was delayed for a while due to a power cut – started to loosen in the second half, substitute Catarina Macario expertly headed in a free-kick, only for her effort to be ruled out for just straying offside by the narrowest of margins.

Chelsea should have been 2-1 with 10 minutes to go when a brilliant move ended in Carpenter smacking the ball wide when it seemed easier to score from eight yards out. The result saw Barcelona go top of the tournament's league table, whereas Chelsea are sixth after four matches. While this may appear to be a good result, this was a missed opportunity for Sonia Bompastor's side.

GOAL rates Chelsea's players from Stamford Bridge…

AFPGoalkeeper & Defence

Livia Peng (6/10):

The summer signing is in for the injured Hannah Hampton and was competent enough in between the sticks for Chelsea.

Lucy Bronze (7/10):

The veteran pulled off a number of important clearances, along with the odd powerful surge into the opposition's half.

Nathalie Bjorn (6/10):

Was solid if unspectacular in Chelsea's backline. If Millie Bright is to return to the starting XI, her place in the team may be under threat if Naomi Girma continues to excel in defence.

Naomi Girma (8/10):

Made a brilliant, last-ditch tackle to keep the scores level early on and some of her recoveries at the back were very impressive. Started ahead of Bright, and it seemed to have been the right call.

Sandy Baltimore (9/10):

Was solid and smart at the back and was a right nuisance going forward. She linked up well with Thompson down Chelsea's left and was arguably their best player.

AdvertisementGetty Images SportMidfield

Keira Walsh (7/10):

The former Barcelona ace plugged some gaps in Chelsea's midfield and linked up well with her team-mates.

Wieke Kaptein (7/10):

Was so close to grabbing a brace but a mixture of the Barcelona keeper and some bad luck kept her at bay.

Erin Cuthbert (8/10):

The captain led by example with a typically industrious and committed performance. She also threaded some nice through balls to her team-mates in the final third. 

AFPAttack

Ellie Carpenter (7/10):

Scored a quite brilliant goal in the first half but was guilty of being a bit sloppy in possession and some of her passing was errant. Plus, she missed a glorious opportunity late on to win it.

Aggie Beever-Jones (7/10):

Held the ball up well and brought others into play. She is working her way back to fitness but got an assist for Chelsea's goal and did herself proud.

Alyssa Thompson (8/10):

Her pace and trickery kept Barcelona's backline honest, both on the left and right wing. Sometimes she takes a touch too many when there are better options available but she is a big talent.

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Catarina Macario (8/10):

It looked like she scored with her very first touch with a sublime header but VAR ruled it out. Was very impressive off the bench.

Sonia Bompastor (7/10):

After last season's drubbing in this competition, the Frenchwoman's team gave a much better account of themselves, particularly in defence. They also created clearer-cut chances and were well organised.

Matthews has had a patchy season with the bat, but found her form in a 133-run stand with Sciver-Brunt

Sruthi Ravindranath14-Mar-2025Bat in the top three, bowl four overs, and do all of it consistently well. That’s a dream player for any T20 side. Mumbai Indians (MI) have not just one, but two of them.Nat Sciver-Brunt has been in an extended purple patch with the bat. Coming into the WPL Eliminator against Gujarat Giants (GG), she had been averaging close to 70 after eight innings with a strike rate of over 150. So GG’s plans might have centred on how they were going to attack Sciver-Brunt.But there was also Hayley Matthews. For most parts this season, she had looked scratchy with the bat. Her strike rate was around 119, and she had two fifties, but she was getting off to slow starts. She started similarly on Thursday. She also got a life when on 5 off nine balls in the second over. GG would have wanted to quickly make up for that.Related

• Delhi Capitals hope to be third time lucky as they eye first WPL title

• It's trial by error for Giants as promising season ends in Eliminator

• Harmanpreet adds more aggression to her game

• Best of WPL 2025 so far: Ghosh's hitting, Henry's sixes, Gautam's promise

• Sciver-Brunt, Matthews power Mumbai Indians into second WPL final

But then a bit of that purple from one rubbed off on the other, and GG’s plans just fell through.It started as soon as Sciver-Brunt came to the crease. A few fours had been hit till then, but MI had made only 31 off their first five overs. Only two runs had come off Tanuja Kanwar’s first five balls in the sixth over, but when she dished out a tossed-up delivery on length, Sciver-Brunt shuffled across and swatted the ball behind square. It was a shot that showed she had got her eye in.It was Danielle Gibson’s turn to bowl next. Gibson and Sciver-Brunt have played together for England. She probably knew how well Sciver-Brunt plays the short ball and that she wouldn’t let a freebie go unpunished. She bowled it anyway, and was pulled solidly between square leg and fine leg, while the slot ball was lofted over mid-on.Sciver-Brunt has always been a reliable player, but she’s also been getting off to stronger starts this season. She has mostly gone out to bat earlier than usual given the opening pair hasn’t clicked for MI this season. Before the Eliminator, she was striking the ball at 145 in the powerplay as compared to the 2023 season where her strike rate in this phase was 130. In this match, despite the openers – Yastika Bhatia was the other – scoring a few boundaries, MI were 37 for 1 in the powerplay but Sciver-Brunt took them to 89 for 1 at the end of ten overs along with Matthews.Matthews was on 17 off 22 balls at the end of seventh over. The two convened for a chat in the middle after that over and fist bumps were exchanged. And the first three balls of the next over off Priya Mishra were dispatched to different parts of the ground for fours with ease by Matthews.”Apart from this tournament, I haven’t really batted with Hayley, but we seem to click pretty well from the first year,” Sciver-Brunt said after the match. “So today she probably wanted to get off to a bit of a quicker start, but it was good that she stayed there and didn’t give her wicket away because we know how powerful she is. We had the time-out and then she probably did time it a little bit better after that. So [I was] just reassuring her that she only needed to time it, [there was] no need to absolutely whack it.”Nat Sciver-Brunt was quick out of the blocks•BCCIBefore this game, Matthews had also lost her wicket to spinners five times in eight innings this WPL; Priya Mishra and Kanwar had dismissed her cheaply the last two times these teams met. But Matthews looked better against spin on the day, having hit both Ashleigh Gardner and Kanwar for boundaries upfront. Gardner also didn’t bring herself on to bowl after her first two, despite her lesser experienced spinners being taken to the cleaners.Mishra was once again at the receiving end of Matthews’ brutal hitting, being taken for 6, 6 and 4 in the 16th over, just two balls after the batter was dropped a second time.Power and timing aside, Matthews also showed off her excellent footwork frequently to access all parts of the ground. It was only fitting that she deposited a short ball from Kanwar over deep midwicket to complete her fifty. The two came together to bump their fists once again, this time with big grins on their faces.Sciver-Brunt said after the match that the pitch was not as batting-friendly as it had looked, and that the pair had relied on their power to work around it.”I could see that it [the ball] probably wasn’t coming on as well because we played the other day and it came on a bit nicer,” she said. “But I felt like it was a bit stoppy. So I guess that played into our hands with the back-foot shots, that are both mine and Hayley’s strengths, I guess. As soon as we worked that out, it probably unlocked us a little bit more. Yeah, working together to get to that point was important.”Hayley Matthews contributed with bat and ball•BCCIIn between those overs, Sciver-Brunt had settled in comfortably and GG’s bowlers were only making her life easier. The pull is one of Sciver-Brunt’s go-to shots and they gave her several chances to play it. This season in the WPL, she’s scored 123 out of her 493 runs playing the shot. Since January 2023, she has averaged 125.75 playing the pull in T20s and has been dismissed playing it just four times in those 65 games. It was Gibson who was punished again, when she bowled two consecutive short balls to her which were dispatched for sixes, the first of which also gave Sciver-Brunt her fifth fifty of the season. Before the match against RCB the day before, Sciver-Brunt had hit 61 fours and no sixes. Her four sixes this season have come in the last two games.”I’ve stuck to my strengths quite a lot and played what’s in front of me,” Sciver-Brunt said. “The quick outfields have helped, and they are nice wickets to bat on as well. I’m really happy that I’m taking advantage of those conditions. Because form goes up and down, that feeling when you’re not so confident isn’t that nice. So taking advantage of it when you are is good.”To top it off, Matthews also picked up three wickets to take her tournament tally to 17, the most for any bowler in a season of the WPL. She dismissed the dangerous Gardner in the powerplay, the big-hitting Bharti Fulmali in the 16th over, and ended GG’s innings getting Meghna Singh out in the 20th over – effective in all phases of the games.”I think I tried to just control one side of the field really well and vary my pace, which is something that I’ve been working on a lot,” Matthews said at the presentation ceremony. “I think the last time we played GG, we were bowling in their hit zone quite a bit and they punished us for it. Definitely a lot of learnings from that. Glad I was able to execute better today.”MI had perhaps been over-dependent on one star allrounder through the season, but they had yet another of them step up on the day, and they have one more in their ranks – Amelia Kerr – who is yet to have her best season with the bat. They will have to prep for the final in less than 48 hours, and will hope that some of that purple off on Kerr too.