Defending champions Royal Challengers (RCB) Bengaluru will be determined to give their home fans a parting victory over a fatigued Delhi Capitals (DC) outfit here on Saturday, before the Women’s Premier League (WPL) moves to Lucknow for its third leg.
RCB had begun the third season of WPL with two wins in Vadodara, but their fortunes have nosedived since the tournament caravan shifted to their home ground M Chinnaswamy here. Three consecutive defeats, including a heartbreaking loss in the Super Over to UP Warriorz, have left them reeling.
Placed third on the table and winless at home so far, RCB will be desperate to bounce back against a Delhi Capitals side facing the challenge of playing back-to-back games before the WPL heads to Lucknow.
The Meg Lanning-led Capitals will have little recovery time as they take on Mumbai Indians in a top-of-the-table clash on Friday before locking horns with RCB the very next day.
RCB’s struggles have been glaring in both batting and bowling. Their batting unit collapsed in the defeat against Gujarat Giants on Thursday, with skipper Smriti Mandhana’s form being a major concern. Her 81 against DC remains her only notable knock in five innings, as spin continues to be her Achilles’ heel.
Her opening partner, England’s Danni Wyatt-Hodge too has been inconsistent, while Australian veteran Ellyse Perry, despite being in sensational touch, suffered a rare failure with a maiden WPL duck against Gujarat Giants.
The bowling department has been equally underwhelming. Frontline pacers Renuka Singh and Kim Garth have lacked consistency, often erring in line and length.
Spinners Georgia Wareham, Ekta Bisht, and Kanika Ahuja have struggled to exert control in the crucial middle overs, compounding RCB’s woes further.
Delhi Capitals, too, have endured an inconsistent campaign, with two losses sandwiched between three wins. Their batting lineup has finally started firing with Shafali Verma and Jess Jonassen finding form.
However, skipper Lanning continues to struggle at the top. Jemimah Rodrigues and Annabel Sutherland have provided occasional fireworks in the middle order, but DC will seek more consistency from their batting unit.
In Shikha Pandey, Marizanne Kapp, young Titas Sadhu, Sutherland,and Minnu Mani, DC boast a formidable bowling attack, making them a dangerous opponent despite their inconsistencies.
Teams (From):
Royal Challengers Bengaluru: Smriti Mandhana (c), Kanika Ahuja, Ekta Bisht, Charlie Dean, Kim Garth, Richa Ghosh (wk), Heather Graham, VJ Joshitha, Sabbhineni Meghana, Nuzhat Parween, Jagravi Pawar, Ellyse Perry, Raghvi Bist, Sneh Rana, Prema Rawat, Renuka Singh, Georgia Wareham, Danni Wyatt-Hodge.
Delhi Capitals: Meg Lanning (c), Jemimah Rodrigues, Shafali Verma, Sneha Deepthi, Alice Capsey, Annabel Sutherland, Arundhati Reddy, Jess Jonassen, Marizanne Kapp, Minnu Mani, N Charani, Niki Prasad, Radha Yadav, Shikha Pandey, Nandini Kashyap (wk), Taniyaa Bhatia (wk), Sarah Bryce (wk), Titas Sadhu.
