Gujarat Giants will be led by Australian Beth Mooney at the inaugural Women’s Premier League 2023.
Dayalan Hemalatha | India
Role – Right hand batter | Right arm Offbreak
Major Teams
India | Gujarat Giants | Trailblazers | Tamil Nadu | Railways
Date of Birth – 29 September 1994 | Age – 28 years
Birth place – Madras
WT20I career summary
Dayalan Hemalatha is an Indian cricketer born on 29 September 1994. She is an all-rounder who currently plays for the Railways and earlier played for Tamil Nadu.
While Hemalatha made her India debut with ODIs against Sri Lanka in 2018, her T20I debut happened in the same year against New Zealand – in November 2018.
She was also selected for the Women’s T20I World Cup in 2018.
Hemalatha played for Trailblazers in the Women’s Challenger Trophy and will now be a part of the Gujarat Giants in the inaugural edition of the WPL.
Harleen Deol | India
Role – Right hand batter | Right arm legbreak
Major Teams
India | India A | Gujarat Giants | Trailblazers | Supernovas | Himachal Pradesh
Date of Birth – 21 June 1998 | Age – 24 years
Birth place – Chandigarh
Harleen Deol is an aggressive top order batter who plays for Himachal Pradesh in the Indian domestic circuit.
Harleen, born in Punjab, moved to Himachal due to her father’s job transfer and for availing better facilities at the women’s academy. She used to play gully cricket with boys during her childhood – something that raised eyebrows (quite usual in India), but was ardently supported by her mother.
The attacking batter is prominent against spinners due to her excellent footwork.
Harleen is occasional right-arm leg spin bowler. She started as an off-spinner but changed her bowling style owing to requirement of a wrist spinner in the Punjab side. Being an avid fan of Shane Warne did help her grasp the art quite quicker.
Harleen made her ODI debut on 22 February 2019 against England in Mumbai and was just the second player from Chandigarh to play for India after Taniya Bhatia.
She went on to make her T20I debut during the same tournament against England in March 2019.
Harleen is also a highly acrobatic fielder and went viral for a brilliant catch at the boundary line against England.
Deandra Dottin | West Indies
Role – Right hand batter | Right arm fast
Major Teams
West Indies | Barbados | Gujarat Giants | Trinbago Knight Riders | Trailblazers | Supernovas | Adelaide Strikers | Manchester Originals
Date of Birth – 21 June 1999 | Age – 31 years
Birth place – Barbados
Deandra Dottin is a West Indies all-rounder who primarily is a power hitter and also an important cog with the ball.
Dottin became the first woman to score a T20I century during the 2010 World Cup and established herself as a power-hitter after smashing a century in 38 deliveries. Earlier, she had the record of a 22-ball half century which was then the fastest amongst woman cricketers.
Dottin has always followed in the footsteps of her male counterpart Chris Gayle and also names herself World Boss, alike the Universe Boss.
Dottin was on top of the list when West Indies Cricket Board awarded central contracts to women for the first time.
Dottin holds the record for highest score in T20Is at number 6 batting position – 112*.
Hurley Gala
Role – Right hand batter | Right arm Medium
Major Teams
India Under-19 | Gujarat Giants | Mumbai
Date of Birth – 19 September 2006 | Age – 16 years
Birth place – Mumbai
Under-19 stats (last nine games)
Hurley Gala was born in a Gujarati family in Mumbai. Hurley didn’t take cricket straight away as, but was more involved in athletics (running) and skating was her favourite. She took skating quite seriously and also shone at national level.
Hurley, at the age of 11, twisted her ankle and was forced out of skating. That was when her father tried to cultivate her interest in cricket.
Hurley started training first with leather balls at a private ground owned by one of her relatives. Soon enough that ground was used by Ivan Rodrigues, Jemimah Rodrigues’ father for his Negev Cricket academy and Hurley started training in a professional setup.
The coach though that she had the core strength to be a fast bowler and indulged her in the profession.
Hurley made her debut for Mumbai’s senior side at the age of 15.
Ashwani Kumari
Role – Right hand batter | Right arm Medium
Auction price – ₹ 35 lakh
Major Teams
Gujarat Giants | Jharkhand
Date of Birth – 25 August 1997 | Age – 25 years
Birth place – Erode, Tamil Nadu
Born in Tamil Nadu’s Erode, Ashwani Kumari now belongs to Jamshedpur and is known for her explosive batting and effective fast bowling.
There was a time when Ashwani didn’t have money for kit bags and would ask boys for their kit bags for participating in tournaments.
Ashwani started as a bowler but would smash the bowlers hard in the nets. As a result, she was asked to open the batting by her state coach and she smashed bowlers for big sixes in the senior T20 Women’s League.
Beth Mooney (Captain)
Role – Left hand batter | Wicketkeeper
Auction price – ₹ 2 crore
Major Teams
Australia | Brisbane Heat | Gujarat Giants | Perth Scorchers | London Spirit
Date of Birth – 14 January 1994 | Age – 29 years
Birth place – Shepparton, Victoria
Beth Mooney is one of the best examples of floaters as she can take any role in the batting order depending on the team’s requirement. She is however, seen batting in the top order for Australia.
Injury to Alyssa Healy provided the first opportunity to Mooney in a T20I against India. Weeks later, she made a half century against New Zealand in her ODI debut.
Mooney has been a player of finals, stitching a match-winning partnership alongside Alyssa Healy in the 2020 T20 World Cup against India and an anchoring 79 in the 2022 World Cup final against South Africa.
In the Big Bash League, Mooney took Brisbane Heat to back-to-back WBBL titles in 2018 and 2019 with Player of the Match innings in both finals before moving west to join Perth Scorchers.
Beth Mooney was appointed as the captain of the Gujarat Giants.
Sneh Rana (Vice-Captain)
Role – Right hand batter | Right arm offbreak
Auction price – ₹ 75 lakh
Major Teams
India | Gujarat Giants | Velocity | Punjab
Date of Birth – 18 February 1994 | Age – 29 years
Birth place – Dehradun, Uttarakhand
Sneh Rana’s story has been in lines to what people term as fairy tales and she has proved her worth in the opportunities she has got with the national team, though five years apart.
Rana made her India debut in 2014 against Sri Lanka but was sidelined in 2016 after suffering a knee injury. She then got a call to the national side in 2021, albeit for a Test match against England, but she made a memorable debut – helping her side to draw the match.
Since then she has been a regular in the limited overs format as well and was a part of the 2022 T20 World Cup side as well as the Commonwealth Games squad.
Sneh Rana was appointed as the vice-captain of the Gujarat Giants.
Monica Patel
Role – Left hand batter | Left arm Medium
Auction price – ₹ 30 lakh
Major Teams
India | Gujarat Giants | Supernovas | Karnataka
Date of Birth – 26 April 1999 | Age – 23 years
Birth place – Bangalore, Karnataka
Monica Patel made her India debut in ODIs against South Africa in March 2021.
Monica would play gully cricket alongside her brother in their colony in Bangalore. His brother took her to a professional club and the coach asked to pick up the ball and bowl. She was quick and rattled stumps of a few senior batters.
Monica primarily wanted to be a batter but the coach persuaded her to be a fast bowler.
Pacer eventually made her age group debut with the Under-19 side for Karnataka. That’s when she started to take the game more seriously.
Monica, subsequently, also went on to play for the senior Karnataka side.
Monica finally earned a call-up to the national side in March 2021 after Covid-19 and played two ODIs against South Africa. But she wasn’t able to make a significant mark with the ball.
Tanuja Kanwar
Role – Left hand batter | Left arm Medium
Auction price – ₹ 50 lakh
Major Teams
Gujarat Giants | Himachal Pradesh | Railways
Date of Birth – 28 January 1998 | Age – 25 years
Birth place – Shimla, Himachal Pradesh
Sabbhineni Meghna | India
Role: Right-handed batter
Major Teams
India | Andhra | Gujarat Giants | Trailblazers
Date of Birth – June 07, 1996 | Age – 26
Birth Place – Andhra Pradesh
WT20I career summary
Batting
Born in Andhra Pradesh, Sabbhineni Meghana has represented the state at various state level tournaments. However, she plays for Railways team in the domestic circuit now. The top-order batter was selected for the senior Zonal Cricket Academy camp in 2016 and ended as the second-highest scorer. She subsequently, received a maiden call-up from the national camp.
In November 2016, she made her international debut against West Indies. In 2021 Women’s Senior One Day Trophy, Meghana scored a splendid 388 runs in just 6 matches and was highest run-getter in that series. Also made her team, Railways to clinched the title.
Ashleigh Katherine Gardner | Australia
Role – Right-handed batter | Right-arm off-break bowler
Major Teams
Australia | Gujarat Giants | Sydney Sixers
Date of Birth- April 15, 1997 | Age – 25
Birth Place – Sydney
WT20I career summary
Batting
Bowling
Ashleigh Gardner made her debut for Australia in February 2017 against New Zealand in Melbourne. Gardner also plays for New South Wales in the Women’s National Cricket League (WNCL), for the Sydney Sixers in the Women’s Big Bash League.
Garndener has won three world championships and four national titles with her respective teams. The 2016-17 season was the best one for the all-rounder as she won championships with both the Sixers and New South Wales.
Ashleigh Gardner has been a part of the Australian team that has lifted the Women’s World Cup in 2022, T20 World Cup in 2018, 2020 and 2023 & CWG in 2022.
Sophia Dunkley | England
Role – Right-handed batter
Major Teams
England | Gujarat Giants | Middlesex Women | South East Stars | Southern Brave (Women) | Spirit Women | Surrey Stars | Trailblazers
Date of Birth- July 16, 1998 | Age- 24
Birth Place- Surrey
Batting
Sophia Dunkley made her England debut at the 2018 Women’s World T20 in the West Indies. Dunkley got the recognition in Kia Super League, impressing for the Surrey Stars. She became the one of the 24 professional women’s domestic cricketers to sign for the newly formed South East Stars in the ECB’s women’s elite domestic structure in 2020.
Sophia Dunkley made history by becoming the first Black woman to play Test cricket for England. She was awarded the Test cap in 2021.
Annabel Sutherland | Australia
Role – Right-handed batter | Right-arm medium fast
Major Teams
Australia Women | Gujarat Giants Women | Melbourne Renegades Women | Melbourne Stars Women | Victoria Women | Welsh Fire (Women)
Date of birth – October 12, 2001 | Age- 21
Batting
Bowling
Annabel Sutherland was 15 when she made her WBBL debut for Melbourne Renegades and was also a part of the Australia U15 & U19 teams. Cricket Australia awarded her with a contract with the National Performance Squad ahead of the 2019–20 season.
Sutherland made her T20 debut in February 2020 against England.
Annabel who is the daughter of former CA head, James and sister of Victorian All-rounder Will also played Australian Ruled football.
Sushma Verma | India
Role – Right-handed batter | Wicket-keeper
Major Teams
Gujarat Giants | India Blue Women | India women | Indian Board President’s Women XI | Velocity
Date of birth: November 3, 1992 | Age: 30
Batting
Sushma Verma made her T20I debut in 2013 against Bangladesh in Vadodra. Before playing for India, Verma-led Himachal Pradesh unit ended as runners-up at the Under-19 All-India women’s tournament in 2011. The wicket-keeper batter was a part of the Indian team that reached the final of 2017 Women’s World Cup. The side lost to England in the title clash.
Georgia Wareham | Australia
Role – Legbreak
Major Teams
Gujarat Giants | Australia Women | Melbourne Renegades Women | Victoria U15 Women | Victoria U19 Women
Date of birth: May 26, 1999 | Age: 23
Bowling
Gerogia Wareham is a legbreak bowler who made her T20I debut for Australia against New Zealand in 2018 in Sydney. Wareham starred in the T20 World Cup triumph in 2018 and returned with bowling figures of 2/11 against England in the title clash.
The leg-spinner who grew up in Mortlake, two-and-half hours west of Melbourne, got the understanding of the game while playing with her brother Jordan in the backyard. She later moved into Victoria’s elite pathway system and was roped in by the Melbourne Renegades in the WBBL.
In April 2019, Cricket Australia awarded her with her first full contract ahead of the 2019–20 season.
Mansi Joshi | India
Role – Right-arm medium fast
Major Teams
Gujarat Giants | India women | Haryana women | Supernovas
Date of birth: August 18, 1993 | Age: 29
Bowling
Born in Uttarakhand’s Tehri, Mansi Joshi made her T20I debut for India against Bangladesh in November 2016 in Bangkok. Joshi plays for Haryana in the domestic circuit. The right-arm bowler was selected in Under-19 in Senior Women’s state team after she attended trials at Haryana Cricket Association.
Joshi who is a fan of Sachin Tendulkar and Brett Lee developed interest in the game right from the very beginning when she was just 9.
“Sachin Sir has always been my role model. He somehow gave me the energy to pursue and continue cricket amidst the daunting challenges. I was fortunate to have received the opportunity to represent Haryana Cricket Association state team. Luckily, I performed well. From there on, my coaches and my well wishers made me realize my cricket strengths which boosted my morale. i realized that with consistent performance, and hard work, I can be where I want to be – in the Indian women’s cricket team,” she told femalecricket.com.
Parunika Sisodia | India
Role – Right-hand bat | Slow left-arm orthodox
Major Teams
Gujarat Giants | Delhi Women
Date of birth: September 1 , 2005 | Age: 17
Parunika Sisodia who hails from UP’s Meerut plays for Delhi in the domestic circuit. She was roped in by the Gujarat Giants franchise for the inaugural edition of the WPL as a bowler. Parunika was always interested in sports as per her father Sudhir Singh who was a cricketer himself. The left-handed bowler who has been playing the game since the age of 14 was selected in Delhi’s senior team for the 2021-22 season.
Shabnam Shakil | India
Role – Right-hand bat | Right-arm medium
Major Teams
Gujarat Giants | India B Women | India women U19
Date of birth: June 17, 2007 | Age: 15
15-year-old Shabnam Shakil who was roped in by the Gujarat Giants in the WPL auction is an Andhra Pradesh native and is enrolled in Class X. The right-handed player developed interest in the game while watching her father play club cricket as a fast bowler and was enrolled Visakhapatnam’s NAD Academy at the age of 8. Shabnam got the selectors’ attention at the regional level due to her ability to bowl at 110 Kmph. She then joined 25 other girls at a camp at the National Cricket Academy, where she received training for the Quadrangular Series.
She was a part of the Indian team that lifted the inaugural U19 World Cup in 2023 under the captaincy of Shafali Verma.
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