RCB captain Mandhana optimistic with improved team balance

Star India batter and Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) skipper Smriti Mandhana said that ahead of the new season of the Women’s Premier League (WPL), the balance of the team has improved and the team hopes to live up to its potential.
The second season of WPL will start from February 23 and will go on till March 17, taking place in Bengaluru and Delhi. Last time around, RCB could not deliver fine performances despite having big names like Ellyse Perry, Heather Knight, Mandhana, Sophie Devine, Megan Schutt and Renuka Thakur in the squad, winning just two out of their eight matches and not qualifying for playoffs.

In a conversation with JioCinema and Sports18 WPL expert Reema Malhotra, in the show titled ‘TATA WPL 2024 Huddle’, RCB skipper Mandhana, her teammate Renuka Singh Thakur spoke of their expectations from the second edition of the league.
Smriti Mandhana, captain of the Royal Challengers Bangalore said: “I would definitely want it to be better than the first season. From RCB’s point of view, quite a few players were released and we brought in new players. So, the balance has improved for sure, and we are hoping to live up to our potential. Playing in the domestic season helped me practice well and we saw quite a few girls against whom we have not played previously. I was able to recommend a few names to my franchise after seeing these girls.”

“Last year, when we joined the team two days before the tournament, we did not know about 90 per cent of the players. We did not know what they did and what they did not. This year, it was important to know their strengths and weaknesses so that we can play better. The WPL is a short tournament and it’s difficult to change things when it’s on,” she added.