Australian opener Alyssa Healy has been appointed as the captain of the Women's Premier League side UP Warriorz ahead of the inaugural season of the tournament set to commence on March 4. Healy is one of the six players bagged by the franchise at the WPL Players Auction and was named the skipper ahead of star India all-rounder Deepti Sharma who even hails from the state of Uttar Pradesh.
"The WPL is a tournament we have all been keenly waiting on, and the UP Warriorz have a fantastic squad, waiting to making a splash once things get going," Healy said in a statement issued by Warriorz.
"We have a good mix of experience and youth along with ability and look forward to putting on a show for our fans. We are here to win and be ruthless in our brand of cricket," the 32-year-old added.
Healy has rich T20 experience been part of Australia's five T20 World Cup-winning sides, having lifted the titles with the Aussies in 2010, 2012, 2014, 2018 and 2020. She was also part of the Australian contingent which went to lift the ODI World Cup in New Zealand last year. In addition, she has a fair bit of capataincy experience too, having led Australia in the absence of Meg Lanning and even Sydney Sixers in the Women's Big Bash League (WBBL).
"Alyssa is a giant of the game and has an immense amount of experience at the highest level, and also has the winning habit which we want in our team," Rajesh Sharma, managing director of Capri Globals, who own the Warriorz franchise, said.
"We hope that the UP Warriorz can make significant strides in this important journey under the leadership of Alyssa Healy, and go on to be a source of joy and inspiration for the women of UP," he added.
UP Warriorz squad for WPL 2023: Alyssa Healy (captain), Sophie Ecclestone, Deepti Sharma, Tahlia McGrath, Shabnim Ismail, Anjali Sarvani, Rajeshwari Gayakwad, Parshavi Chopra, Shweta Sehrawat, S Yashasri, Kiran Navgire, Grace Harris, Devika Vaidya, Lauren Bell, Laxmi Yadav, Simran Shaikh.