UP Warriorz Women Skipper Acknowledges RCB's Dominance in WPL Clash

Lanning Reflects on the Match

Meg Lanning, the captain of UP Warriorz Women, conceded that her team was thoroughly outperformed by Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) during their Women's Premier League (WPL) match on Monday. She emphasized the necessity for improvement in their top order, noting the excessive number of dot balls early in the innings. Lanning also commended RCB's performance, stating they effectively controlled the game once they gained the upper hand.

RCB's Impressive Performance

A remarkable partnership of 137 runs between Grace Harris and captain Smriti Mandhana propelled RCB to a convincing nine-wicket victory in Navi Mumbai.

'We were outplayed tonight by RCB'

"We would have preferred to start with a couple of wins, but we were clearly outplayed by RCB tonight. Their bowlers applied pressure right from the start, not allowing us to settle. It wasn't our finest performance, but the quick succession of games allows us to move on swiftly. There are definitely aspects we need to refine, especially at the top of the order, including my own performance. We faced too many dot balls early on. However, credit goes to RCB for their excellent bowling upfront, which set the tone for their victory. We will analyze the match, identify areas for improvement, and move forward," stated Meg Lanning post-match.

Tactics and Key Players

Lanning expressed uncertainty regarding Shikha Pandey's choice to bowl cross-seam deliveries with the new ball, indicating that they would discuss it further. She praised Pandey as one of the top bowlers in the league, saying, "Shikha is among the best in this competition. She varies her approach, sometimes aiming for swing and at other times hitting the pitch harder to extract something from the surface. Unfortunately, it didn't work out tonight. When Grace Harris is in form, she is challenging to contain. She can hit in all areas and displayed her power tonight, particularly with her straight shots. Once she finds her rhythm, she becomes difficult to stop, and unfortunately, we couldn't manage to rein her in today."

Match Summary

In the match, RCB opted to bowl first, restricting UP Warriorz to 50/5 early on. However, Deepti Sharma (45*) and Deandra Dottin (40*) helped the team recover to a total of 143/5. Nadine de Klerk and Shreyanka Patil each took two wickets. In response, Grace Harris showcased her striking ability with a blistering 85 off 40 balls, while Smriti Mandhana remained not out at 47. This victory marks RCB's second consecutive win, while UP Warriorz faced their second straight defeat.

Brief Scores

UP Warriorz: 143/5 in 20 overs (Deepti Sharma 45*, Deandra Dottin 40*, Nadine de Klerk 2/28) lost to RCB: 145/1 in 12.1 overs (Grace Harris 85, Smriti Mandhana 47*, Shikha Pandey 1/28).