In the 19th game of the Women’s Premier League 2023 (WPL), on Tuesday, March 21, Mumbai Indians Women defeated Royal Challengers Bangalore Women by a score of four wickets, regaining the top spot in the standings. In their final group-stage match, the Royal Challengers suffered a disheartening loss after scoring only 125/9 when batting first. Despite Smriti Mandhana‘s continued struggles—she only managed to score 24 off 25—Richa Ghosh’s 29 off 13 helped Bangalore reach 100 runs.
Mumbai’s bowlers delivered a strong performance despite dropping the previous two games. As Issy Wong and Natalie Sciver-Brunt each claimed two wickets, Amelia Kerr grabbed three for 22. Despite Hayley Matthews and Yastika Bhatia putting up a 53-run opening wicket stand, the batsmen struggled in their pursuit. The Royal Challengers were able to reach the goal in 16.3 overs thanks to Amelia Kerr’s 31* off 27.
In the WPL points standings, Mumbai Indians lost the top spot to Delhi Capitals, and Royal Challengers finished the first season in fourth place.
Smriti Mandhana exits the competition without scoring a fifty; the captain of Bangalore made a strong start but once more fell short of a significant total. Smriti scored 24 off of 25 with three fours, a six, and fielding catches to help the Mumbai Indians’ openers get out. The most expensive purchase in the WPL 2023 auction, Smriti, concluded the competition with 149 runs from eight innings at an average of 18.62 and a strike rate of 111.19, with a top score of 37.
Mumbai Indians return to the top: The Mumbai Indians ascended to the top position in the league table and resumed their winning ways. In order to avoid playing in an elimination game, Delhi Capitals must win their final game against the third-place UP Warriors on the same day.
The following summarizes the RCB season
The delivery by Megan Schutt cost Bangalore a significant appeal to the third umpire in the very first over. Their problems worsened when Sophie Devine gave up 17 runs in the following over, effectively ending any chance of a comeback. After giving up a massive hit on a no-ball and a wide delivery, she then got rid of Hayley in the final over of the inning. However, yet another no-ball undoubtedly had an impact on the RCB’s morale. The RCB concluded the season with just two victories in eight games, and this has been their season-long narrative.
We attempted to fight, said Smriti Mandhana, who lost her captaincy. Kanika bowled accurately. One of those times when you’re a fielder and the ball that goes up comes to you. We performed poorly today. We are a fantastic team. We are a well-rounded team. We won’t claim that our lack of success means we don’t have a strong team. We had some incredible athletes.
The initial four or five games weren’t in our favor. My own performance was lacking. We didn’t have excellent beginnings. Sometimes things don’t turn out the way you had hoped. The following year, we’ll be better. Shreyanka and Kanika are two beautiful young people who we have discovered. They have shown no fear. was enjoyable to witness as a skipper. Asha also bowled really well.
Harmanpreet Kaur, the winning captain, said: Winning is always crucial to build momentum. It’s possible to feel bad after losing. But, everybody was discussing how to win this. We were unable to accomplish our goals in the previous two games.
But today we spoke about how to approach it. Our desire to succeed in the game was strong. We were attempting to chase it down in 15 overs when we got off to a strong start. We started playing more sanely after I lost my wicket. Amelia is constantly motivated to succeed for the squad. She constantly strives to perform well for the group.
Amelia Kerr, the game’s Player of the Match, said: I believe it is fantastic to have the win. Turning things around, it demonstrates the team’s character. For us, it was a speedy turnaround. It’s good to see you again. seems to be going a bit in my favor today. A good day when I first arrived was 10 and over. World-class batters can be found here. They can go for it if there are only short boundaries. The PP was the most appealing element. We had a terrific beginning. But, we afterwards lost a few wickets. It involved making some solid shots. With Pooja, I had a productive partnership. The run-rate pressure was not a factor for us.
India
