Ashleigh Gardner created history in the 2025 WPL |Courtesy - BCCI
KEY HIGHLIGHTS
- Ashleigh Gardner created history in her captaincy debut
- Gardner hit eight sixes in her innings
- Gardner's innings came at a strike-rate of 213.51
In her first match leading the Gujarat Giants (GG) in the history of the Women's Premier League, Australian cricket star Ashleigh Gardner lit up the Kotambi Stadium in Vadodara in the opening match of the 2025 season as the Gujarat-based outfit posted a massive total of 201 on the board.
Gardener made 79 runs in just 37 balls as she remained unbeaten to help the Giants post a huge total of 201 on the board. Her innings included three boundaries and eight sixes. Earlier, ex-skipper Beth Mooney scored a half-century with a solid knock of 56 runs in 42 balls. Deandra Dottin played a quick-fire knock of 25 in 13 balls.
Ashleigh Gardener Creates History
Gardner's tally of maximums is the highest by a player in the first innings of a WPL innings and is the first player to hit eight sixes in an innings while batting first. The only other instance of a player hitting eight sixes in an innings came in the 2023 season when Sophie Devine smashed 99 runs for RCB against GG at the Cricket Club of India's (CCI) Brabourne Stadium in Mumbai during a memorable run chase. Devine hit eight sixes and nine boundaries in her spectacular 36-ball innings. No other player has hit more than five sixes in an innings, either batting first or second.
Most Sixes In A WPL Innings
| Player |
Sixes |
Innings |
Year |
Match |
Venue |
| Sophie Devine |
8 |
2 |
2023 |
RCB VS GG |
Mumbai (CCI) |
| Ashleigh Gardner |
8 |
1 |
2025 |
GG VS RCB |
Vadodara |
| Shafali Verma |
5 |
2 |
2023 |
DC VS GG |
Navi Mumbai |
| Elysse Perry |
5 |
1 |
2023 |
RCB VS DC |
Navi Mumbai |
| Alice Capsey |
5 |
2 |
2023 |
DC VS MI |
Navi Mumbai |
| Harmanpreet Kaur |
5 |
2 |
2024 |
MI VS GG |
Delhi |
| Shafali Verma |
5 |
2 |
2023 |
DC VS RCB |
Mumbai (CCI) |
Gardner continued her dream day with the ball as she put RCB on the backfoot in the chase in the second over of the innings. The GG skipper took two wickets in her first over of the season, which were the big dismissals of star Indian batter Smriti Mandhana and Danielle Wyatt. The 27-year-old became only the fourth player in WPL history to score more than 70 runs and take two wickets in an innings after Hayley Matthews, Alice Capsey, and Deepti Sharma.
Also Read: RCB Create History, Become First Team In The World To...
Meanwhile, GG's tally of 10 sixes is the second most by a team in an innings behind Delhi Capitals' 11 sixes against RCB in 2023 at Navi Mumbai's DY Patil Stadium.
Gardner's strike rate (213.51) is the third quickest in the league's history in an innings of more than 30 balls, behind Sophie Devine (275) against RCB in 2023 and Harmanpreet Kaur (216.66) against GG in 2024.
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