Captain Meg will take all pressure: UP Warriorz head coach Abhishek Nayar

NAVI MUMBAI: It’s not casual to beryllium the caput manager of teams successful some the Women’s Premier League (WPL) and the Indian Premier League (IPL). Former India and Mumbai allrounder Abhishek Nayar, successful complaint of some the UP Warriorz successful the WPL and Kolkata Knight Riders successful the IPL, is the archetypal to bash so.

However, erstwhile it comes to the WPL, the erstwhile India adjunct manager has recovered a elemental mode to easiness his ‘workload.’Explaining wherefore helium chose to sanction Meg Lanning arsenic the skipper of UP Warriorz for WPL-4 during his team’s pre-season presser connected Monday, Nayar termed the Australian legend, who thrice led the Delhi Capitals to the WPL final, arsenic “the champion caput retired determination successful women’s cricket.”

“For me, she is the champion caput retired determination successful women's cricket. So we are precise blessed to person her.

I deliberation thing that was precise important erstwhile we tried to signifier this squad was to get the champion skipper retired determination and idiosyncratic who could pb this group. It was a very, precise casual and evident prime for us. Having Meg determination makes things easier for me,” Nayar said. The Mumbaikar quipped that it’s Lanning who volition “take each the unit portion helium volition beryllium chilling, having coffee.” “Yes, it's the archetypal clip for maine (as a women’s squad coach), yes.

But I've ever believed the champion teams person the champion captains. And this format, especially, is simply a captain's format. So I wanted idiosyncratic who could pb this team. And having Meg determination makes things precise casual for maine due to the fact that she's going to instrumentality each the pressure. I'm going to beryllium chilling, having coffee. So nary pressure. I'm precise excited,” Nayar said.The WPL stint is of course, a caller commencement for Nayar. “It's a caller travel for maine successful women's cricket.

But thing changes. It's inactive cricket. It's inactive astir the players. It's not astir the coach. So I'm present to enactment her and the squad successful the champion mode possible. And hopefully, we tin make a bequest of our own,” helium said.Lanning, arsenic a player, won 2 ICC Women’s Cricket World Cups and 5 ICC Women’s T20 World Cup titles. As captain, she led Australia to T20 titles successful 2014, 2018, 2020 and 2023 and 1 ODI World Cup crown successful 2022.One of the astir accordant performers successful WPL too, Lanning has amassed 952 runs successful 27 matches, forming a hugely palmy opening concern with Shafali Verma astatine Delhi Capitals.Geared up for the caller challenge, Lanning, who was bought by UPW for Rs 1.9 cr astatine the WPL auction, said, “I’m precise excited to articulation UP Warriors and to beryllium capable to enactment with Abhishek and the group. I deliberation we've assembled a truly bully squad. We've got immoderate truly bully equilibrium determination with experienced players.

We've besides got Deepti (Sharma) and Harleen (Deol) coming in, who volition supply america with immoderate bully acquisition and extent there, and past immoderate good, younger players arsenic well.

The squad did a large occupation successful putting the database together. We've covered a batch of antithetic bases, and present we conscionable get the accidental to spell retired determination and play and explicit ourselves and person immoderate fun.”‘Navgire highly hard to halt erstwhile she gets going’ Lanning is excited to enactment with UPW’s young guns, India pacer Kranti Goud and explosive batter Kiran Navgire, who smashed the fastest-ever period (off 33 balls) for Maharashtra against Punjab.

“I person seen her from the different broadside the past fewer years and it looks similar she is highly hard to halt erstwhile she gets going. The information that it has been an fantabulous home play for her truthful acold is great, coming with a batch of assurance and often cricket is based a batch astir assurance truthful I americium truly excited to spot what she tin bash for america this year,” Lanning said.“I americium ace excited to spot what Kranti she has got and I volition beryllium backing her to beryllium capable to execute and bash well,” she added.Having played the past 3 seasons of the WPL, Lanning has a just thought astir however the modular of Indian women’s cricket has improved implicit the years-India’s historic, maiden triumph successful the Women’s ODI World Cup past twelvemonth being a reflection of that. India’s players are present making important contributions successful their teams’ WPL wins. “I deliberation the biggest happening that I person seen is conscionable the extent and the magnitude of Indian players who are capable to lend and triumph games for their teams.

Probably successful the aboriginal portion of the tournament, it was astir apt reliant connected the internationals a just spot and the large Indian players. Whereas present you person got contributions from a fig of antithetic radical and they are putting unit connected the large stars which is truly bully to see.

So, that has been 1 of the biggest points is that you person got truthful galore much players present who tin execute astatine the level required,” Lanning said.She felt that the WPL had “exposed India’s players to high-pressure situations.”

“So that creates immoderate truly bully extent for Indian cricket and we person evidently seen that with the occurrence astatine the World Cup. So that is astir apt 1 of the things. The different happening is conscionable exposing much players to precocious unit situations. That is what the WPL has done. There is simply a batch of eyes watching each crippled and determination is simply a batch of accrued media attraction and things similar that.

So the much you bash that the much you get utilized to it and the amended you get.

I deliberation we person seen that passim the 3 tournaments that everyone is getting utilized to that a small spot much and thriving nether those conditions,” Lanning explained.Having played for Australia from 2010-23, Lanning was people upset astatine Australia’s stunning decision to Australia successful the 2025 Women’s ODI World Cup semifinals? Did it adjacent punctual the 33-year-old to antheral a comeback? “Obviously, I inactive cognize a just fewer radical successful the squad arsenic well.

I would person loved for them to beryllium capable to triumph that crippled and triumph the World Cup. That is the quality of elite sport. There are truthful galore bully teams retired determination now. That is conscionable due to the fact that everyone is developing. We person got programmes and tournaments successful spot that let radical to play amended and support processing their skills. It creates a bully situation for Australia to support improving and enactment retired however we tin triumph much World Cups.

Ultimately, that is what you privation to do,” Laning said.“It is large for the game, I think. It has evidently been hard to watch. I would person loved Australia to win. That is the mode it goes. We volition effort and triumph the adjacent one,” she said.‘Excited to enactment with Shikha Pandey’Apart from Kanti, Lanning is assured successful the abilities of her different salient Indian accelerated bowler, seasoned pacer Shikha Pandey. “I americium truly excited to enactment with Shikha again. I thoroughly enjoyed playing alongside her antecedently and she is conscionable precise experienced.

She knows her crippled truly well. She knows what her strengths are and what her antithetic options are arsenic good and precise chill and calm nether unit and often successful this format you are nether the pump a batch arsenic a bowler truthful I deliberation she provides that for our team.

I deliberation she volition beryllium capable to pb our gait bowling onslaught and supply immoderate existent bully guidance for those bowlers determination and assistance maine successful that relation arsenic well. She has shown that she is simply a proven performer crossed the full innings,” Lanning said. “She tin unfastened the bowling, she tin vessel done the mediate and she tin decorativeness astatine the death. As a skipper to person idiosyncratic similar that successful your team, that conscionable makes my occupation a small spot easier…I’m looking guardant to different large play from Shikha,” she added.