WPL 2026: Why did Hayley Matthews miss Mumbai Indians' season opener? Head coach Lisa Keightley answers

Talismanic West Indies captain Hayley Matthews missed Mumbai Indians' (MI) opening match in the Women's Premier League (WPL) 2026 against Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) due to a shoulder injury.

The

fourth edition of the WPL got underway on Friday, January 9, at the Dr DY Patil Sports Academy in Navi Mumbai. Matthews, who opens the batting for MI, wasn't a part of the playing XI. At the toss, MI skipper Harmanpreet Kaur mentioned that the Caribbean all-rounder was unwell.

Later, MI head coach Lisa Keightley revealed that Matthews had sustained a shoulder injury, which ruled her out of the first match of the new season. The former also mentioned that Matthews' fitness will be assessed on Saturday and a call will be subsequently taken about her participation in MI's second game.

"We will see how she goes tomorrow, and if she's fit for tomorrow's game. But she is really close," Keightley was quoted as saying by Cricbuzz.

Matthews has played 29 WPL games, amassing 758 runs at a strike rate of 27.07 and a strike rate of 121.47. She has notched up five half-centuries, including a highest score of 77* against RCB. With the ball, Matthews has accounted for 41 wickets at an average of 17.56 and an economy rate of 7.25. Her best figures of 3/5 came in the final match of the inaugural season of the WPL in 2023.

Coming to Friday's match, Smriti Mandhana won the toss for RCB and opted to bowl first. Mumbai posted 154/6 in their 20 overs after G Kamalini (32), Nicola Carey (40), and Sajeevan Sajan (45) made important contributions.

In reply, RCB were in dire straits at 65/5 and then at 121/7. However, Nadine de Klerk batted superbly with the lower order to steer the Bengaluru-based franchise to a thrilling win off the last ball. The South African batter remained unbeaten on 63 off 44 balls, backing up the four-for she took earlier in the night.

18 runs were required for a win in the last over, bowled by Nat Sciver-Brunt. The equation came down to eight runs being needed off the last two balls. De Klerk hit a six and a four to help her team eke out a three-wicket victory.