A few hours before its commencement, the Women’s Premier League (WPL) was hit by a big controversy after all-rounder Deandra Dottin claimed that she was fit for the tournament. Her franchise, Gujarat Giants (GG), had announced her replacement a couple of days back. A day later, the cricketer revealed that she was fit and not recovering from any injury.
Before their fixture against UP Warriorz, Gujarat have issued an official statement and revealed the reason behind announcing Dottin’s replacement. As per the franchise, the all-rounder wasn’t able to obtain the medical clearance before the cut-off date. Gujarat also confirmed that she can join them for upcoming seasons if she obtains medical clearance in time.
“Deandra is a world-class player and a wonderful signing for the franchise. Unfortunately, we were unable to obtain a medical clearance before the defined deadline for this season. Such clearances are a requirement of all the players participating in the WPL. We look forward to seeing her return to the field soon. Subject to the clearance of her medical report, she will be a part of the Gujarat Giants squad in the upcoming seasons,” Gujarat Giants wrote in their statement on Twitter. Gujarat announced Kim Garth as her replacement.
Dottin is an experienced T20 campaigner and the franchise will surely miss her services. The West Indies all-rounder has 2697 runs and 62 wickets in 127 T20Is. She has been part of the Women’s T20 Challenger in past.
Gujarat Giants suffer huge defeat in tournament opener
Beth Mooney-led Gujarat Giants suffered a big 143-run defeat in the tournament opener against Harmanpreet Kaur’s Mumbai Indians. Asked to chase down a huge target of 208, Gujarat only managed a total of 64 on the board.
GG were reeling at 23/7 in 8 overs and were pushed to the back foot early. Harmanpreet was bestowed with the Player of the Match award for her knock of 65 off 30.
