Former Indian cricketer Reema Malhotra said that Harmanpreet Kaur-led Mumbai Indians (MI) will face pressure in their upcoming showdown against Smriti Mandhana-led Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in the Women's Premier League (WPL) 2024 on February 2 at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru.
Both MI and RCB have won two out of three matches in the competition. However, they both head into this match following defeats to Alyssa Healy-led UP Warriorz (UPW) and Meg Lanning-led Delhi Capitals (DC) respectively. But RCB lead in Net Run Rate (NRR) with a score of +0.705, whereas MI lags far behind with -0.182.
Earlier, RCB captain Smriti highlighted that her team benefits greatly from the enthusiastic support of the crowd in Bengaluru. Malhotra acknowledged that RCB might have the advantage, but she also believed that Harmanpreet and MI are capable of performing well under pressure.
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Battle between two cricketing brains: Malhotra
"It will be a battle between two cricketing brains - Smriti Mandhana and Harmanpreet Kaur. Both know each other very well and can read each other's minds. Whoever performs well as a team will win," Malhotra told Sports 18.
"However, the Mumbai Indians shouldn't forget that the RCB team won't be alone, they will attack along with their family. Their ground is so full that they don't allow Smriti Mandhana to speak," she said.
'MI can perform under pressure'
"Smriti herself said that 10 extra runs should be added because of the crowd. So the pressure will definitely be on the Mumbai Indians but Harmanpreet Kaur and her team know very well how to perform under pressure," Malhotra added.
In the previous season, Harmanpreet's MI defeated Mandhana's RCB twice, by nine and four wickets respectively. However, in 2023, RCB had a poor season, starting with five consecutive losses before crashing out. This year, RCB has shown their potential, especially in front of their home crowd.
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