In the third match of the inaugural Women's Premier League (WPL), Royal Challengers Bangalore captain Smriti Mandhana won the toss and elected to field first against Delhi Capitals. RCB went in with their four most experiences overseas players - Elysse Perry, Meghan Schutt, Sophie Devine and Heather Knight.
Royal Challengers Bangalore Women (Playing XI): Smriti Mandhana(c), Sophie Devine, Disha Kasat, Ellyse Perry, Richa Ghosh(w), Heather Knight, Kanika Ahuja, Asha Shobana, Preeti Bose, Megan Schutt, Renuka Thakur Singh
Delhi Capitals Women (Playing XI): Shafali Verma, Meg Lanning(c), Marizanne Kapp, Jemimah Rodrigues, Alice Capsey, Jess Jonassen, Taniya Bhatia(w), Arundhati Reddy, Shikha Pandey, Radha Yadav, Tara Norris
Bangalore have put together a fantastic brilliant set of international recruits, including skipper Mandhana, who is the highest-paid player in the league at Rs 3.40 crore. They have at their disposal the likes of Ellyse Perry, Heather Knight, Sophie Devine and Richa Ghosh, making them definite title contenders ahead of their first-ever WPL match.
But on paper, the multiple World Cup-winning legendary Australian Meg Lanning's Delhi team will have an edge over their opponents. Lanning can call upon the services of Jess Jonassen, Marizanne Kapp and Alice Capsey among their four overseas options, while their Indian line-up boasts the likes of Shafali Verma, Jemimah Rodrigues, Shikha Pandey, Poonam Yadav, Arundhati Reddy, Taniya Bhatia, Radha Yadav who are all seasoned international players.
Squads:
Delhi Capitals: Meg Lanning (captain), Shafali Verma, Jemimah Rodrigues, Jess Jonasen, Alice Capsey, Tara Norris, Laura Harris, Marizanne Kapp, Poonam Yadav, Shikha Pandey, Taniya Bhatia (wk), Aparna Mondal (wk), Titas Sadhu, Arundhati Reddy, Radha Yadav, Minnu Mani, Jasia Akhtar
Royal Challengers Bangalore: Smriti Mandhana (captain), Richa Ghosh (wk), Dane Van Niekerk, Heather Knight, Ellyse Perry, Megan Schutt, Sophie Devine, Erin Burns, Disha Kasat, Sahana Pawar, Renuka Thakur, Komal Zanzad, Poonam Khemnar, Kanika Ahuja, Preeti Bose, Shobhana Asha, Shreyanka Patil, Indrani Roy (wk).
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