WPL 2023: Flop Indian XI from first week of tournament

Just like the Indian Premier League (IPL), the idea behind the launch of the Women’s Premier League (WPL) too was to promote local talent and give them the exposure to learn and compete against some of the best cricketers in the world.

While players like Shafali Verma, Harleen Deol and Saika Ishaque among many others, have gained massively from this league in the first week of the competition itself, there are a lot of other cricketers who have completely failed to put up a show so far.

Even though there’s still a lot of cricket left in the tournament, there’s a sense of tension in the air regarding these cricketers, as few of them are regulars in the national team. So, without further ado, let’s identify these cricketers and talk about the flop Indian XI from the first week of the competition.

Flop Indian XI after first week of WPL 2023

1. Smriti Mandhana (c)

Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) skipper Smriti Mandhana is the most expensive player of the inaugural edition of the Women’s Premier League. She was bought in for INR 3.4 crore but be it with batting or captaincy, she hasn’t been able to prove herself so far in the competition.

With the bat, she has scored only 80 runs in four matches and has faced massive difficulties in tackling spinners. Notably, she has a lot of experience playing in the shortest format of the game but that hasn’t helped her in WPL so far. She has struggled to get going and give RCB a good start which could be one of the reasons why the franchise is yet to make a mark in the tournament.

When it comes to her captaincy, RCB are yet to win a single game after four matches. The franchise is almost on the verge of elimination and that’s a massive reason to worry about. However, if they can manage to win their remaining four games, there could still be a chance. But, Smriti and company haven’t yet shown any glimpse of finding themselves among wins.