Oval Invincibles don’t pose too much mystery for London Spirit in the Women’s Hundred eliminator on Saturday – especially to Spirit’s star allrounder Deepti Sharma.
Deepti has produced two excellent performances against the Invincibles so far this year, top-scoring for Spirit with 44 and taking 3 for 18 in a tied first encounter at Lord’s, and again with an unbeaten 46 in a losing cause on Sunday at The Oval, when she also took 3 for 18, her efforts bettered only by Marizanne Kapp‘s 47 and 4 for 11 for Invincibles.
Now, with a place in Sunday’s final against Welsh Fire on the line, Deepti hopes her side can put together the sort of performance that will see them defeat their London rivals for the first time in this campaign.
“Because we are going to play a third game, I’m pretty sure what we have to do and what our plans are; very clear about that,” Deepti told ESPNcricinfo. “Just keep it simple, that’s what I always think. Just keep it simple, enjoying each and every game and express myself. That’s what I’ve followed from day one.”
Deepti has enjoyed a strong return to the Hundred for the first time since she played for Spirit in 2021. She scored at least 30 in each of her five innings so far and has taken seven wickets at an average of 19.57 and economy rate of 7.14.
She was Player of the Match in the final game of the regular season, with an unbeaten 37 and 1 for 19 in a seven-wicket win that knocked Northern Superchargers out of the running for the play-offs.
In that match, she shared an unbroken 77-run stand for the fourth wicket with England and Spirit captain Heather Knight and, just as the opposition can keep few secrets in franchise leagues where fixtures fall regularly in a condensed schedule, the boom in those leagues – with players from different countries becoming team-mates – means the same can be said at international level.
Alongside Knight, with whom she helped Western Storm to the 2019 Kia Super League title, Deepti has also linked up with former Australia captain Meg Lanning at Spirit, as well as England spin duo Sarah Glenn and Charlie Dean, having run the latter out at the non-striker’s end in an ODI at Lord’s in 2022.
“I forgot everything because when you are playing in the same team, I am someone who always forgets in-the-past things,” Deepti said. “I always [try to] be in the present, watch the moment and watch the matches that are going on. They are good players and good team-mates as well, so we were just gelled up every day and we are enjoying every moment in the team room or outside the team room.
“Meg is here… I was so excited because I always play against her, so I told her that I’m really excited to play in the same team. She’s very, very cool. She always supports you whether she’s batting or outside the ground. I like her nature.
“It doesn’t matter if you are playing in the same team, same franchise, or you are playing for your country. It’s just about the mindset. Whether it’s the Hundred, WPL or the WBBL, it’s cricket. Cricket is cricket, so we love to play that.”
Spirit faced a nervous wait for their place in the eliminator to be confirmed, watching Invincibles clinch victory with six balls remaining against Trent Rockets in their last regular match.
“We were in the team room and we all were watching, so it was a little bit nervous,” Deepti said. “We were hoping for the best for us. We were not thinking about what will happen, just believing in ourselves that we would play the eliminator.”
Spirit need that belief to hold for at least one more match – they hope two matches – if they are to win a maiden Hundred title. The Invincibles will be seeking their third crown, having had their run broken at two in a row by last year by Southern Brave, who finished bottom of the table this year.
Chamari Athapaththu is unavailable for Invincibles after joining Sri Lanka in Ireland for their ODIs series, but they will have proven match-winner Kapp, who was pivotal in their win over Rockets with 26 not out and 3 for 8.
Kapp has 181 runs for the campaign at an average of 60.33 and strike rate of 141.40 and has taken 10 wickets at 13.40 with an economy rate of 5.95, to the delight of Invincibles captain Lauren Winfield-Hill.
“We’ve seen how good she’s with the new ball and, when she’s out in the middle in a chase, the dressing room is calm because she’s been such a crucial finisher for us with the bat, and she fields in all the hot spots,” Winfield-Hill said. “She’s absolutely the first name on any teamsheet in any competition anywhere in the world, in my opinion, closely followed by Nat Sciver-Brunt.
“I just think it’s frightening. Sometimes you feel like she’s almost playing a PlayStation game, especially when she’s batting, where it’s like she’s just picking where the fifth gap is in the field and pressing X, and the shot comes off. She feels like she’s at the absolute peak of her powers and just getting better all the time.”
