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Key Takeaways
- 1📊 Litchfield smashed 78 off 40 chasing 209 in WPL 2026
- 2🏆 First major WPL statement as an aggressive opener
- 3💡 Six-hitting based on relaxed swing and pure timing
- 4🔮 Warriorz gain a left-handed power anchor for future games
"Warriorz opener is growing her power game while retaining her ability to manipulate fields"
A blazing 78 off 40 from Phoebe Litchfield lit up WPL 2026, even if UP Warriorz fell just short in a steep 209-run chase against Gujarat Giants. It was the kind of knock that announces a new power-player in women's T20 cricket.
Relaxed swing, ruthless intent
Promoted to open, Litchfield embraced the Warriorz' attacking brief, clearing the infield at will and threading gaps with the same ease that has defined her strokeplay in international cricket. The standout was how effortless the power looked – minimal muscle, maximum timing. Time and again she held her shape, used her hands late, and let the pace of the ball work for her as she launched over cover and midwicket.
What impressed most was the range: the lap and late dab to manipulate fields, followed by the clean extension of the arms when the bowlers over-pitched. Even as the required rate kept climbing, her tempo never felt frantic. There was a calm, almost training-ground feel to her swing, even when she targeted the longer boundary.
"A nice, relaxed swing and timing the ball" – that's the simple mantra Litchfield leans on when she goes searching for sixes.
The innings may not have produced a winning result, but it sends a clear warning to opposition attacks: if Litchfield settles, the Warriorz suddenly have a left-handed enforcer who can both dismantle fields and clear them with ease.
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