Gujarat Giants vs Royal Challengers Bangalore - The Giants Aiming To Disrupt RCB's Momentum

Last year, Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) had a grand sum of zero wins after five games. This year, they have nabbed three wins and are much closer to a playoff spot. A win on Wednesday against the Gujarat Giants will take them to the doorstep. 

RCB’s margin of defeat against Mumbai Indians on Saturday sent their healthy net run rate plummeting into the negative. However, Monday’s 23-run win against the UP Warriorz has helped bring it back into the positives. That aside, their tactical changes helped unlock an explosive brand of cricket, which you’d think will be their mantra for the remainder of the season.

The decision to open with S Meghana and have Ellyse Perry bat at No. 3 meant Sophie Devine dropped down the order after scores of 1, 6, 23, and 9 in her first four outings. Meghana set the powerplay alight. Smriti Mandhana matched her stroke for stroke en route to her 50-ball 80, her second WPL half-century.

With the platform set, Mandhana and Perry put on 95 as RCB kicked their innings into orbit. Richa Ghosh lent the finishing touches to an inning that ended on overdrive, with them making 198. While the fast bowlers got taken for plenty early on by Alyssa Healy, Sophie Molineux, and S Asha helped induce a slowdown that eventually meant the Warriorz stumbled to their third defeat in five games.

RCB’s ground fielding was excellent, and their catching was even better. Eventually, what also helped them was oodles of luck. Mandhana was dropped on 28, soon after a stumping chance was missed. Players of her caliber can’t be given those many chances. She’ll make teams pay.

Ellyse Perry, with the infinite possibilities she offers with bat and ball, should be on your team as the all-rounder who can give you heaps of points. In terms of the batting, the short square boundaries at Delhi’s Arun Jaitley Stadium should play into the hands of batters who can cut and pull well. This makes Smriti Mandhana, in current form, an excellent pick.

Another dark horse will be Devine, even though she hasn’t been in form with the bat. Her explosive power can not just take the surface out of the equation but also pepper the shorter boundaries with relative ease. That she can bowl will also give you a double advantage. Go big on RCB to win this and inch closer to the playoffs.