Gujarat Giants couldn’t recover from Renuka Singh's two-wicket spell: Saba Karim

The Royal Challengers Bangalore beat Gujarat Giants by 8 wickets to secure their second win in a row at the WPL 2024, chasing down the target of 108 in 12.3 overs. JioCinema and Sports18 WPL experts Saba Karim and Reema Malhotra analyzed RCB’s performance. RBC’s Sophie Devine too spoke exclusively to JioCinema on Match Center Live. Excerpts:

Saba Karim spoke on Renuka Singh Thakur’s bowling: “It was a fantastic display. This is exactly what RCB was looking for. Renuka Singh was excellent tonight. When she bowls to right-handers, her ball comes in. It’s a new skill she’s developed and worked hard towards being able to deliver balls like that. It’s not easy to add a new skill like that. She’s proving to be one of the main players for RCB. Her two wickets gave Gujarat Giants the shock they couldn’t recover from.”

RCB’s Sophie Devine spoke about Smriti Mandhana’s captaincy: “It’s been fantastic. I think she took a lot of learning from last season. It was tough going at times, a lot of weight on her shoulders. But she’s been fantastic. She’s been proactive and bold with her decisions and I think it’s seeped through to the rest of the team as well. There’s a real calmness within this group. Everyone loves to see Smriti when she’s on fire and batting the way she is. I think the confidence coming from the captaincy and on the field is getting through to her batting.”

Devine on the RCB crowd: “It’s unbelievable. It’s the biggest crowd I have played in front of in my career. When the RCB chant goes up, it’s deafening, it’s like having a 12th player out there. I don’t envy Smriti at all for trying to get others’ attention, you can barely hear yourself speak at times. It’s fantastic, the crowds have been fantastic. It’s grown from last year with what we were able to do in Mumbai and to see the people of Bengaluru come out.”

Also Read: WPL 2024 Match 5 Highlights: Royal Challengers Bangalore Women vs Gujarat Giants Women Recap

Reema Malhotra spoke on Sabbhineni Meghana’s form: “Players know when they’re in a good frame of mind. It reflects in their performance. In the first season, many players were nervous. She’s a regular performer for Railways. RCB picked her when she was in good form and was delivering on the pitch. When she’s playing on the off-side, she drives so firmly. I have captained against her and players have told me, ‘When Meghana is batting, don’t put me in the covers’. That’s the impact of a player.”