🏏WPL 2026: Match 16: RCB W vs MI W at Vadodara on 26/01/26🏏 - Page 15

Smriti Mandhana, RCB-W captain:

Absolutely brilliant innings from Richa Ghosh. I mean, it was just a treat to watch. Nadine as well, a good contribution. But yeah, I think, of course, these sort of innings, when you lose, wouldn’t go noticed. But I think it’s one of the best innings I’ve seen. Nat is definitely a world-class player. She can hit one ball at three different places, which again makes life very difficult. Credit to her. The shots she played were amazing. I mean, there were not many answers which we could find out there in the middle. She almost scored the bulk of the runs. Plus, the way she accelerated after 25-30 is something which every youngster should watch and learn. Bowling has been brilliant throughout the first five games for sure. But today was one of those days where a few of our bowlers didn’t get the lines right. In T20 cricket, when someone is set, you try a few things and sometimes it doesn’t work out. Lauren Bell was brilliant with the new ball and even when she came back on. But others couldn’t step up today. Nadine also bowled those two difficult overs from the shorter end, so credit to her as well. We’ll think about our strategies and come back. Every time we do speak about not being complacent about qualifying. We have to win one to go straight to the finals. Having said that, there are a few things we definitely need to work on. WPL, because it’s five teams, always becomes complicated towards the end of the season. But for us, keeping things simple worked in the first five games, and we have to continue doing that. In T20 cricket, you’re going to have extremely good days and bad days. We have to take both in our stride and see what we can do better.

Match Summary

Mumbai Indians Keep Playoff Hopes Alive! What a crucial victory for the Mumbai Indians! In a must-win encounter, they brought their 'A' game to the field, putting up a mammoth total of 200 runs. With this vital win, MI has successfully kept their playoff dreams breathing, proving they can handle the pressure when it matters most.

RCB’s Nightmare Start - Chasing such a massive target required a flying start, but Royal Challengers Bengaluru faced a disaster inside the Powerplay. The top order simply collapsed under pressure, leaving them reeling at a precarious 40/5 after six overs. The damage was done early by the fiery spells of Shabnim Ismail and Hayley Matthews, who ripped through the batting lineup and shared the first five wickets between them, leaving RCB with a mountain to climb.

Richa Ghosh fought till the end! Despite the early carnage, Richa Ghosh played a magnificent lone hand. After Nadine De Klerk chipped in with a steady cameo of 28 to stabilize the ship, Ghosh unleashed an incredible counter-attack, smashing 90 runs off just 50 balls. She fought valiantly until the very last delivery, but the target proved just out of reach. Amelia Kerr sealed the deal for Mumbai, dismissing Ghosh on the final ball as RCB fell short by 15 runs.

Nat Sciver-Brunt's brilliant century! Earlier in the game, Mumbai Indians set a massive target of 200 runs against RCB after Nat Sciver-Brunt created history by scoring the first-ever century in the Women's Premier League. After RCB won the toss and chose to bowl, Sciver-Brunt remained unbeaten on 100 and shared a 131-run partnership with Hayley Matthews, who fell on 56. While Lauren Bell bowled well for Bangalore taking two wickets, Mumbai's powerful batting in this do-or-die game left the table-toppers with a huge target to chase.

Harmanpreet Kaur, Mumbai Indians captain: Great match. Don't know what to say. It was a good show from Nat and good contribution from Matthews. Good game overall. We have been playing together. This is our fourth year, we know each other well. Whenever team needs, someone stands up. Really happy everyone came together (and contributed to the win tonight). This little break really helped us. We had good bonding sessions. It gave us confidence. We knew these are important matches and we wanted to go in with a fresh mind.
(On Sciver-Brunt) She has been amazing for our team. We love watching her batting and love playing with her. She is always taking responsibility and love to see that. She (Ismail) has been waiting for a long time. Good to see she has gotten her rhythm back and long may it continue.

Nat Sciver-Brunt | Player of the Match: Yeah, it’s obviously a special moment to reach that milestone, but more importantly, it was about getting runs on the board for the team. These last two games are pretty much knockout games for us, so to be able to perform like that - and to build such a strong partnership with Hayley Matthews - was massive for the team. I’m just really happy with how it turned out.

(about her consistency) I guess it’s about preparing in the same way and mentally trying to turn up in the same place each time. Staying present in the match is key - not thinking about the balls that have already gone or the ones that are coming up, just focusing on the one you’re about to face.

(on having 2-3 shots for one ball) Today I was just reacting to the balls that were bowled and playing according to the field. Sticking to my strengths, backing the shots I like to play, and manoeuvring the field when possible - that was the plan.

(does she plan specifically against a bowler) A little bit, yeah. Some bowlers suit your strengths more than others, and sometimes a bowler might just be on fire that day. So it’s about assessing where you can score. We also used the powerplay to read the wicket - we didn’t go too hard early, realised it was playing nicely, and then Hayley and I decided to put the foot down.

Nat goes to the top of the list of orange cap holders with a mammoth 319 runs. Harmanpreet Kaur is in the second place with 260 runs.

Congratulations to MI, but what a fightback by RCB!

Huge congratulations to Nat on scoring the first-ever century in the WPL, her maiden century, and being named Player of the Match! What an incredible achievement! Amazing contribution with the bat & ball

Details for today's match--

Delhi Capitals Women vs Gujarat Giants Women, 17th Match, Women's Premier League 2026 - Commentary

Series: Women's Premier League 2026

Venue: BCA Stadium, Kotambi, Vadodara

Date & Time: Today, 7:30 PM LOCAL