West Indies' star cricketer Deandra Dottin has dropped a bombshell right ahead of the Women's Premier League (WPL) 2023 which is set to start from March 4 (Saturday) at the DY Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai. Dottin was roped in by Gujarat Giants (GG) in the WPL auction but in an announcement made by the franchise she was ruled out of the tournament and the Australian star Kim Garth, who went unsold in WPL auction last month, came in as her replacement.
Gujarat Giants cited medical situation behind Dottin's absence from the tournament.
“The Adani Gujarat Giants have had to call for a replacement player just before the start of the inaugural edition of the 2023 Women’s Premier League,” Gujarat Giants reportedly said in a statement ahead of MI vs GG WPL 2023 match.
“Ace West Indies all-rounder Deandra Dottin is recovering from medical situation and has been replaced by Australian pace bowler Kim Garth. The Adani Gujarat Giants wish Deandra a speedy recovery, and welcome the talented Kim Garth.”
However Dottin, who was bought for Rs. 60 lakh after bidding for her base price at Rs. 50 lakh, refuted Gujarat Giants claims of medical situation and came out with a clarification by posting a tweet which has sparked controversy even before the first ball of the tournament is bowled. Dottin tweeted,"I really appreciate all the messages but truth be told I’m recovering from nothing but the Holy Ghost anointing thank you 🙏🏾 #GodIsGood #GodIsInControl"
Meanwhile, Gujarat Giants will start off their WPL campaign against Mumbai Indians on March 4. A total of five teams, Mumbai Indians, Gujarat Giants, UP Warriorz, Royal Challengers Bangalore and Delhi Capitals, will battle it out with each other for the ultimate trophy as the tournament will be played from March 4 to March 26. There will be a total of 20 league games in the inaugural season of the WPL involving the five franchises. A total of 2 play-off matches will also take place that will be played over a span of 23 days.
It will be a perfect contest between Mumbai Indians Nat Sciver-Brunt and Harmanpreet Kaur and Gujarat Giants' Ashleigh Gardner and Beth Mooney in the tournament opener.
Gujarat Giants' full squad: Ashleigh Gardner, Beth Mooney (captain), Sophia Dunkley, Annabel Sutherland, Harleen Deol, Kim Garth, Sneh Rana, S Meghana, Georgia Wareham, Mansi Joshi, Dayalan Hemalatha, Monica Patel, Tanuja Kanwer, Sushma Verma, Hurley Gala, Ashwani Kumari, Parunika Sisodia, Shabman Shakil.
Mumbai Indians full squad: Harmanpreet Kaur (captain), Nat Sciver-Brunt, Amelia Kerr, Pooja Vastrakar, Yastika Bhatia, Heather Graham, Issy Wong, Amanjot Kaur, Dhara Gujjar, Saika Ishaque, Hayley Matthews, Chloe Tryon, Priyanka Bala, Humairaa Kaazi, Neelam Bisht, Jintamani Kalita, Sonam Yada.
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