New Delhi, Oct 30 (IANS) UP Warriorz head coach Abhishek Nayar has tempered expectations surrounding the franchise’s revamped squad for the Women’s Premier League (WPL) 2027 season, stressing that performances on the field, rather than big names on paper, will determine the success of their recruitment following an eventful auction.
Armed with the biggest purse heading into the auction, UP Warriorz emerged as the busiest franchise, securing several high-profile players, including Australia’s Sophie Molineux and Grace Harris, India’s Sneh Rana and wicketkeeper-batter Sushma Verma. The franchise has also strengthened its backroom setup with the addition of former India chief selector Neetu David as Head of Scouting.
Despite the impressive list of acquisitions, Nayar believes the real challenge will begin once the players come together, particularly given the limited preparation time available before the tournament.
Drawing an analogy between assembling a cricket squad and shopping, the UP Warriorz coach emphasised that a promising-looking team sheet does not necessarily guarantee results once the competition begins.
“I always think it’s like going shopping. On the mannequin, the clothes look very good, but when you buy and wear them yourself, they look very different. So, at the moment, the squad on paper, seeing the names on the board, looks very good, but it will depend a lot on what happens on the field.
“My challenge with women’s cricket last year, which I felt, was that you get very little time with the players before the season because the domestic season is going on, and those players, and even the internationals, come just a few days before the start. So, you get roughly one week with them. So, we are hoping that the experienced players will take up the mantle. As much as the selection headache will be there, in the T20 format, form matters the most,” Nayar told JioStar.
The franchise’s recruitment of Sushma Verma was another move driven by the desire to bring greater experience into the playing group. After experimenting with younger wicketkeeping options in the previous edition, UP Warriorz opted for a more established name to strengthen the department.
Verma’s performances in the Women’s Caribbean Premier League (WCPL) for Trinbago Knight Riders (TKR), along with her showing during the Warriorz trials, convinced the management to pursue her services at the auction.
Nayar believes her experience as a wicketkeeper-batter will provide the team with greater stability, with captain Meg Lanning expected to play a key role in utilising the resources available.
“We were looking for experience. Last season, we experimented with Shweta and, to a large extent, it didn’t work out. So, this time around, we thought that we’d try and get someone experienced. We were looking at Sushma. She did well for TKR, playing in the Women’s CPL. So, we were tracking her. She had batted well in our trials as well.
“So, the thought process for this season was to get more experienced hands in the team and then leave it to Meg Lanning to take care of the rest. I have felt that experience counts a lot in the WPL. In women’s cricket, for me, going towards experience and having someone like Sushma as that experienced keeper-batter adds a lot to our team in a lot of ways, and we are extremely happy to have her,” he added.
–IANS
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