Watch: Kishan and Green Turn 'Journalists', Discuss Mumbai Indians' 5-Star WPL Run

Key members of the Mumbai Indians Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise Ishan Kishan and Cameron Green had some fun and games ‘interviewing’ each other in a mock press conference and celebrated the brilliant run of the franchise’s women players in the ongoing Women’s Premier League (WPL). The video of the duo turning ‘reporters’ was shared by the official Twitter handle of the WPL on Wednesday.

The Harmanpreet Kaur-led Mumbai Indians notched up their fifth consecutive win in the inaugural WPL on Tuesday, beating the Gujarat Giants by a big margin of 55 runs at Mumbai’s Brabourne Stadium. The feature of the victory was captain Kaur’s 30-ball 51 and handy bowling performances by the team’s overseas players Nat Sciver-Brunt, Hayley Matthews and Amelia Kerr as the Giants were restricted to just a little over 100 runs in reply to the Indians’ 162/8. This convincing victory ensured the Indians’ passage into the playoffs, and the side would be looking to hold on to their form in their remaining matches and ensure a top-place finish, which will guarantee them a direct qualification for the final.

Green asked Kishan about the performance of the Mumbai Indians women’s side, while Kishan wanted to know from Green how big the WPL stage was for women cricketers. Mumbai Indians are the most successful team in the history of the IPL, having won the prestigious T20 competition five times (2013, 2015, 2017, 2019 and 2020) and finishing runners-up once (2010), and the women’s team would be looking to match the standard set by their male counterparts. It is against this backdrop that the support of the members of the men’s team assumes all the more importance.

Also read – WPL 2023 Points Table: Mumbai Indians Through to Play-Offs, Continue Dominance at the Top

KIshan and Green’s tete-a-tete can also be seen as an important bonding exercise ahead of another season of the IPL slated to start on March 31. The Mumbai Indians had a forgettable outing last year, finishing at the bottom of the table and the Rohit Sharma-led side would be looking to get back to winning ways this year. Kishan, a dashing wicketkeeper-batsman, who had recently cracked an ODI double ton in India colours, and Green, fresh from a century in the just-concluded Border-Gavaskar Trophy against India, would be aiming to continue amassing runs.

Kishan has a fine IPL record, having scored 1,870 runs in 75 matches so far at a strike rate of 132.34. He has also taken 32 catches and effected a couple of stumpings in his IPL career.

Green, on the other hand, will be making his IPL debut this year. His record in the Big Bash League (BBL) – a tournament similar to the IPL – is not exactly extraordinary, having just played 13 matches over two seasons and scored just a little more than 100 runs with a modest strike rate. His international T20 record is not flattering either. He has just played eight T20I matches for Australia and scored just 139 runs. However, the Mumbai franchise would have seen something special in the all-rounder to have shelled out Rs 17.5 crore in the auction. That made Green the most expensive Australian in the history of the IPL.

Also read – WPL 2023: How Royal Challengers Bangalore Can Qualify For The Playoff

The Mumbai Indians, however, would be hit by the absence of their star bowler Jasprit Bumrah, who continues to struggle with back problems. The seasoned pacer played only a handful of matches in 2022 and last appeared in a competitive match in September.

The Mumbai Indians start their IPL 2023 campaign away against the Royal Challengers Bangalore on April 2.

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