WPL 2024: Royal Challengers Bangalore expect to make home advantage count in second outing

Going into the inaugural edition of the Women’s Premier League, many predicted the Royal Challengers Bangalore to be one of the contenders to win the title.

Who wouldn’t when the team boasted of stars like captain Smriti Mandhana, Ellyse Perry, Heather Knight and Sophie Devine along with Indian stars Renuka Singh and Richa Ghosh.

However, RCB had a horror start to the season. They were at the receiving end of Meg Lanning-Shafali Verma opening masterclass as the duo scored 162 runs in just 14 overs as the Delhi Capitals posted 223/2 — the highest score of the tournament.

In response, they were bundled out for 163 runs as associate player Tara Norris ran through the middle order. In the next match, eventual champions Mumbai Indians romped to a comfortable nine-wicket win thanks to a Hayley Matthews and Nat Sciver-Brunt blitzkrieg.

Those losses knocked the wind out of RCB’s sails as they lost their following three matches, including a 10-wicket loss to the UP Warriorz, to all but end their hopes of securing a playoff berth as they finished fourth on net run rate ahead of the Gujarat Giants.

Injuries and withdrawals

Going into the WPL 2024 auction, RCB parted ways with coach Ben Sawyer and appointed Adelaide Strikers’ Women’s Big Bash League-winning coach Luke Williams as...

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