Harleen Deol Makes A Statement: From Controversial Retire Out To Match-Winning Knock In WPL 2026

Harleen Deol indeed had a point to prove. The World Cup-winner was called back, retired out in cricketing parlance, by the UP Warriorz during their third game of the Women's Premier League (WPL) 2026 season at Dr DY Patil Sports Academy, Navi Mumbai, on Wednesday.

She was batting on 47 off 36 balls at a strike rate of 130.55, with the help of seven fours, when that controversial decision was taken. The call, or rather the signal – a moment caught on camera – came directly from the team head coach, Abhishek Nayar.

Following her departure, the Warriorz added only 11 runs in the final three overs, stumbling from 141/4 to finish at 154/8. The collapse proved costly as they lost by seven wickets in a last-ball thriller, a defeat that left them winless in the fourth edition of the tournament.

Reflecting on the decision, UPW mentor Lisa Sthalekar said: "He (Nayar) turns to me and he goes, 'I think it's the time we need to potentially bring Harleen off.' And I was like, 'Ooh, okay, this isn't a normal thing in the women's game."

Only a day early, debutant Ayushi Soni was retired out by the Gujarat Giants during their defeat against the Delhi Capitals – a trend emerging in T20 cricket. Teams in SA20 (South Africa), Big Bash League (Australia), and Super Smash (New Zealand) have resorted to this tactic.

"And then I think another over came and she just wasn't able to get that swing, that power that we needed to clear the boundaries. So then it was decided (to retire her out)," Sthalekar added.

"And then he (Nayar) spoke, I think, to Meg (Lanning, the captain) and a couple of the coaches just quickly to make sure we were all on the same page. And then we pulled the trigger."

Interestingly, after a night's sleep, the Warriorz registered a facile seven-wicket win, chasing down defending champions Mumbai Indians Women's 161/5 with 11 balls to spare. And ensuring their first win was Deol, the 27-year-old all-rounder from Chandigarh.

The right-handed batter arrived in the middle when the team was struggling at 45/2, but along with Phoebe Litchfield (25 off 22) and Chloe Tryon (27 off 11), she stitched crucial stands to ace the chase. She returned unbeaten on 64 off 39, laced with 12 boundaries.

And everyone was talking about Harleen Doel, or at least wanted to know what really transpired.

After the match, rival captain Harmanpreet Kaur hailed Harleen Deol's attitude, saying that "she's shown what, you know, why she's there in the side and what she can bring to the team. And I think today she batted beautifully, and I think she's someone who always wanted to do well for her team."

Kaur, who led India to a historic World Cup win months ago, added: "Yeah, surprised to see she was retired in the last game, but I think she came up with a very positive mindset and I hope she'll continue that."

Lanning, the winning captain, revealed that she "had a quick chat with her and she took yesterday really well."

"To come out tonight and play as she did was really great to see. It just shows, you know, what she can do in this format. And yeah, she made it look very easy. So hopefully that gives her a lot of confidence heading into the backend of the tournament," added the Aussie great.

Harleen Deol, however, refused to dwell on the past and simply said that she "was batting well yesterday also, and no point to keep stressing on that thing (retired out)."