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Mandhana, Perry star as RCB win against UP Warriorz

cricket04 March 2024 18:05| © MWP
By:CS Chiwanza
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Smriti Mandhana and Ellyse Perry scored sensational half-centuries to lead the Royal Challengers Bangalore to a 23-run win over the UP Warriorz in their Tata WPL match at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bengaluru, on Monday.

The home side, who were asked to bat first, scored a mammoth 198 for three, the highest total in the WPL this season. The Warriorz' chase started on a promising note but faltered and they mustered 175 for eight in their chase. The win puts RCB level with Delhi Capitals and Mumbai Indians at the top of the table. They are behind the two teams because they have played one game more.

Mandhana was the portrait of excellence as she carved 10 fours and three sixes on her way to an outstanding 80 off 50. The 27-year-old faced 34 deliveries to chalk her second half-century of the season. Her knock earned her the orange cap, as she is now the leading run-scorer in the league.

The RCB captain was part of two crucial partnerships that took the game away from the opposition. The first was her 51-run opening stand with Sabbhineni Meghana. She justified her captain's decision to ask her to open by playing selfless cricket. Meghana's knock did not last beyond the powerplay, but the 28 runs she contributed helped create a solid platform.

Her dismissal brought Perry to the crease. The Australian was content to play second fiddle to her captain, whose purpose was to make the Warriorz' fielders chase leather and send their bowlers into disarray with her strokeplay. The Warriorz had two opportunities to dismiss her in consecutive deliveries when she was on 26, a dropped catch and a missed stumping.

Mandhana made the visitors pay for not taking those chances by constructing a 90-run second-wicket partnership with Perry. Deepti Sharma eventually dismissed the RCB captain in the 17th over. And just when the thought they had caught a break, Perry stepped up and took control of the innings. The Australian smashed four fours and four sixes on her way to 58 off 37 balls. The 33-year-old needed a mere 33 deliveries to register her half-century. Her 42-run partnership with Richa Gosh (21 off 10) put the game beyond the Warriorz.

Alyssa Healy knew that her team needed to have a good start if they were to have any chance to chase down 198, the highest target this season. The Warriorz captain was in fine form, carving boundaries to shift the pressure off her team and onto the bowlers' shoulders. She raced to a 34-ball half-ton and by the time her innings was done, she had carved seven fours and three sixes for her 55 off 38.

All she needed was a partner to help her take down the RCB attack. Unfortunately, no one put her hand up. The RCB bowlers took wickets at regular intervals to prevent the Warriorz from establishing a partnership of substance. The visitors' highest partnership was Healy's 47-run opening stand with Kiran Navgire. Deepti Sharma came in after a middle-order collapse and did her best to wrestle the game into the Warriorz' favour, but her 33 off 22 balls was too little, and maybe too late.

RCB's Asha Sobhana and Sophie Molineux were the best bowlers in the contest. The spinners finished with identical figures of two wickets for 29 runs in four overs. They beat their counterparts, Sophie Devine and Georgia Wareham, who also took two wickets each, by a better economy rate. Devine and Wareham conceded 9.25 and 9.5 runs an over, respectively.

Sophie Ecclestone was the standout bowler for the Warriorz with a single wicket for 22 runs in four overs. Ecclestone is also the current purple cap holder.

ROYAL CHALLENGERS BANGALORE: Smriti Mandhana (c), Sophie Devine, Sabbhineni Meghana, Ellyse Perry, Richa Ghosh (wk), Sophie Molineux, Georgia Wareham, Ekta Bisht, Simran Bahadur, Asha Sobhana, Renuka Singh

UP WARRIORZ: Alyssa Healy (wk)(c), Chamari Athapaththu, Kiran Navgire, Grace Harris, Shweta Sehrawat, Poonam Khemnar, Deepti Sharma, Sophie Ecclestone, Rajeshwari Gayakwad, Saima Thakor, Anjali Sarvani.

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