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WPL 2026: A new debate has erupted this season of the Women’s Premier League (WPL)—is it right to ‘retire out’ a frozen batsman? Harleen Deol of UP Warriors was retired by coach Abhishek Nair. After being dropped, he played an innings against Mumbai Indians which not only gave his team its first win but also ended the controversy that had been going on for the last 24 hours.

When the coach’s decision surprised

Before the match against Mumbai Indians, Harleen was playing after scoring 47 runs on 36 balls. The pitch was a bit slow and it was not easy to hit big shots. Then at the end of the 17th over, coach Abhishek Nair raised his hand and called Harleen back. Harleen was also surprised at this. He asked his teammate at the crease, Shweta Sehrawat, “Me?” But respecting the team’s decision, she returned. After Harleen’s departure, the team could add only 13 runs in the last 18 balls.

‘Redemption’ within 24 hours

For any player, being called out of the field like this can shake the confidence, but Harleen chose to respond with the bat. His body language was different as soon as he entered the field against Mumbai Indians. With this innings, Harleen became only the second Indian to score a half-century this season. Thanks to his innings, UP Warriors won with 11 balls remaining.

Coach Nair’s clarification

After the match, coach Abhishek Nair defended the decision of ‘retired out’. He made it clear that a message had already been given to Harleen that if the run rate did not increase by the 16th or 17th over, changes would be made. “We wanted to give power-hitters a chance. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t,” Nair said. Praising Harleen, he said that the first thing Harleen said after coming out was, “Sir, we can win this match, the pitch is difficult.” This was the biggest proof of his being a ‘team man’.