Jon Lewis Resigns As UP Warriorz Head Coach After Poor WPL Season
Last Updated:
Jon Lewis resigned as UP Warriorz head coach in the Women's Premier League after finishing last in 2025. Charlotte Edwards replaces him as England women's head coach.
Just months after his departure from the England women's team, Jon Lewis has stepped down as head coach of UP Warriorz (UPW) in the Women's Premier League (WPL).
Lewis had helmed the team since the league's inception in 2023, guiding them to the playoffs that season before they were defeated by the eventual champions, Mumbai Indians. However, in the 2024 season, UP Warriorz fell short of the playoffs, finishing fourth in the points table.
In WPL 2025, UP Warriorz, captained by India's off-spin bowling all-rounder Deepti Sharma due to regular skipper Alyssa Healy's knee injury, ended at the bottom of the points table.
'From day one, you believed in us. Through the highs, the learnings, and everything in between — Thank You, Coach Jon Lewis, for leading with heart, calm, and belief. You'll always be a part of the Warriorz Family," the franchise expressed on its social media accounts on Friday.
Lewis who had represented England in one Test, 13 One-Days, and two T-Twenties, had previously resigned from his role as head coach of the women's team following a dismal 16-0 women's Ashes defeat in Australia, which came after their group-stage exit in the Women's T20 World Cup last October.
The position of England women's head coach, formerly occupied by Lewis, has now been assumed by Charlotte Edwards, who led Mumbai Indians to their second WPL title earlier this year before her departure from the franchise.
The future of Lisa Sthalekar, the former Australia cricketer, as mentor for UP Warriorz remains uncertain, while Anju Jain, the former India player who subsequently coached Bangladesh, has not been with the franchise since last year. Consequently, both Mumbai Indians and UP Warriorz will be in search of a new head coach ahead of WPL 2026.
With IANS Inputs
First Published:
June 27, 2025, 15:59 IST
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Hindustan Times
8 hours ago
- Hindustan Times
Spinner Charani justifying the faith of Mithali Raj in her game
Chandigarh: Apart from stand-in skipper Smriti Mandhana, another India cricketer created a flutter with her performance against England in the first T20I at Trent Bridge, Nottingham on Saturday. India's Shree Charani (L) celebrates after taking the wicket of England's Nat Sciver-Brunt in the first T20I against England. (Reuters) Wearing a blue headband over her pixie haircut, left-arm spinner Shree Charani hogged the spotlight on T20I debut by claiming four wickets for 12 runs to help India hand England their heaviest defeat, by a comprehensive 97 runs. The 20-year-old, who had played five ODIs since her international debut in April, showed her mettle to announce her arrival in the shortest format for India with a bang. India tried out spinners Shreyanka Patil and Asha Sobhana, and also selected Shuchi Upadhyay for the England tour, but owing to injuries all have been kept away from the action. Taking advantage of the chance that opened up, Charani, who plays for Andhra Pradesh, has been able to make an impression not only with her attitude on the field but also as a spin talent. It was former India skipper Mithali Raj who was impressed with Charani's talent and pushed her hard. Being the mentor in Andhra Pradesh, Mithali saw Charani's spin bowling and discussed with Andhra Pradesh senior women's team head coach and former India cricketer, Vanitha VR, about the roadmap for the spinner. 'Mithali was impressed with Charani's talent. She had done well playing for the Andhra senior team. She bowled with authority, control and got a good amount of turn as well. Mithali spent a lot of sessions with her and the team to groom them for the season. Mithali told Charani to focus more on the senior team circuit and cut down on U-23 state matches and brought her to Women's Premier League, where she was bought by Delhi Capitals in the auction,' Vanitha said. Charani was bought by DC for ₹ 55 lakh. She played in the WPL final against winners Mumbai Indians, taking two wickets at an average of 17.75. At the domestic level, she did well in the Senior Women's Multi-day Challenger Trophy in March, claiming a five-wicket haul against India B and finishing with nine wickets in three matches. She was then included in the India ODI team for a tri-series in Sri Lanka. 'Her progress was gradual and she was picking things at a good pace. She is very serious and focussed. Her father got a bit emotional during the WPL auction when she was bought by DC but she was quick to tell him to relax and not get emotional. She is a two-dimension cricketer and has good batting abilities. Once she won Andhra Pradesh a T20 game against Mumbai by scoring a match-winning knock,' added Vanitha. Charani comes from Erramalle village in YSR-Kadapa district, in south-central Andhra Pradesh. She has also been included in the ODI team that will play a three-match series after the T20Is. Vanitha is confident Charani could become India's main spinner in the coming years and also play a key role in the upcoming ODI series against Australia, followed by the ICC Women's World Cup, starting on September 30 in India and Sri Lanka. 'We saw the selectors back spinners Poonam Yadav, Ekta Bisht and Rajeshwari Gayakwad for a long period and they had an impact as well. Charani should also be given more games to gain experience and confidence. She has the ability to surprise batters as she bowls a bit quicker through the air. If groomed well at the international level, she could be India's mainstay spinner in the World Cup team,' said Vanitha. She said that Andhra Pradesh Cricket Association secretary Sana Sathish backed Charani all through last season and also took decisions to upgrade women's cricket in the state. Charani, who idolises Yuvraj Singh, picked up six wickets in the five matches she played in Sri Lanka in the tri-series. On Saturday at Trent Bridge, she rounded off her memorable haul by scalping England captain Nat Sciver-Brunt. It was only Sciver-Brunt who showed resistance as England chased a huge 211, hitting 62. Smriti Mandhana, whose brilliant 62-ball 112 set up the easy win, praised the debutant after the game. 'The spinners really did well to provide breakthroughs, especially Shree Charani. We saw a bit of what she could do with the ball in the last WPL. She was pretty good in WPL, but the way she came up with a fiery performance in the first game was really amazing.' The second T20 will be played at the County Ground in Bristol on Tuesday.
Indian Express
12 hours ago
- Indian Express
How does Joe Root unwind? Sketching on IPad and playing the guitar
An Apple pencil scribbling sketches on the IPad is how Joe Root will be found spending his time, around cricket but not quite playing it. Talking on UK Vitality's 'Day in the life of' show recently, Root spoke of why he digs drawing and sketches on his IPad whenever he finds a few hours to kill. 'When we are out on tours and in hotel rooms or I'm playing, sometimes I like to draw. I generally draw on my IPad now,' he told the show. 'It's something that if I didn't play cricket, I'd still have done at school and beyond. I just find it's a really nice way to switch off, take mind off stresses of touring or if it's time to fill before flying. It's a nice way to relax. And unwind really,' he said. A large part of it is a creativity outlet but the decorated batsman, looking to drop a bunch of records in coming days, also likened the sketching to cricket. 'There are some parallels for drawing – sketching with cricket really. As a batter you got to be, or I like to think you got to be a little bit of an artist. How you construct innings, how you decide shots you might have to play and how you manage different bowling types. There is a small crossover between the two,' he said. In the show he is seen dropping off his children to school, and asking them what they'd like to become when they grow up. 'Ninja, chef or an inventor,' is the answer, as he adds that a busy winter touring meant he had spent good time through the start of the summer at home with family. When quizzed on how he deals with pressure, Root said, 'If I feel pressure, I go back to, relate to when I started playing. That feeling of when you wake up in the morning and if it was raining outside we would still want to go outside and play cricket. Be it in garden, on the driveway, on the road. Me and my brother would have many Test matches. And we would think we are playing against Australia or South Africa. I remember that raw emotion that enjoyment I got from playing cricket,' he said adding he was keen to enjoy second half of my career, not burdened by captaincy anymore. Often spotted singing Oasis numbers, like Don't look back in anger, strumming an Ukulele, Root also carries a guitar on tours or to matches at home. 'I was very fortunate through a friend who's big supporter of cricket, I got a signed guitar. He basically said 'Good luck for Ashes, beat Australia.' Every now and again you take it on tour, and before long you have two hours and you figure out a song or a riff,' he said. When at home in his Sheffield village, Root has begun playing padel at the local club. 'They opened a padel centre in the village it's been about 4-5 weeks. One thing I love about it is spend time with friends, you get benefits of exercise as well. Not only does it scratch and itch of competitiveness but gets you active. One of the best things of sport is you make lifelong friends,' he said.
Hindustan Times
14 hours ago
- Hindustan Times
India given wake-up call by England wicketkeeper after hosts ‘put them to bed' in series opener in Headingley
Jun 29, 2025 03:26 PM IST England's victory in the first match of their home series against India will be a massive confidence boost, particularly for the younger members of the team. The Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy, and the Ashes to follow later this year, are a big challenge for a team which has chopped and changed plenty, but the performances of players such as young wicketkeeper Jamie Smith will be a big cause for optimism for English fans. Shubman Gill in conversation with Joe Root after England sealed a 1-0 series lead in Leeds.(AP) Smith hit the winning runs at Headingley to make it 1-0 in England's favour, playing a couple of mature innings lower down the order to serve his team extremely well. Very much a subscriber of the demands that Bazball asks of its players, Smith credited this outlook of the team as the reason why they were able to shut the door on India and ensure a win in a historic chase. 'We've seen some really special stuff over the course of the three years – 500 in a day and chasing down these totals has been incredibly pleasing and special for those guys, showing what can be done,' said Smith to the Daily Mail.' This was a great example of where the team have got to that we didn't give India a chance,' remarked Smith. 'Never gave them a sniff…' As per the 24-year-old, being very clinical in how they went about the chase and constructed the innings was crucial given the quality India possessed. Anchored by Ben Duckett's sublime century, England kept Jasprit Bumrah wicketless in the fourth innings, a tall ask of any team but accomplished with great certainty by the hosts in Leeds. 'Maybe in the past we would have still played that same way, but might have had a collapse that gave them a chance or a little in. But it was so measured and controlled throughout that we never gave them a sniff. The really important thing is for the team to be quite ruthless: once you're on top, try to put them to bed,' said the wicketkeeper. Off to a strong start, Smith will want to ensure Rishabh Pant is not the only wicketkeeper batter making headlines this summer. He has made England's manifesto clear: once they have the advantage, they will not let it slip. The question India will want to ask is if they can do something to force open any cracks.
