Ellyse Perry: That's (getting back to winning ways) what we've been speaking about and that would be really nice. We've got a super tough challenge ahead of us tonight with UP and the one that we are also really looking forward to, should be a great match. Our last one at home as well, so we really want to make the most of it. Clearly something to do with the conditions, teams are so adapted to chasing totals these days. Regardless of the toss tonight, we've got a really good handle on what we require ourselves to do tonight to be successful. (On not bowling her full quota of four overs) Just to do with the depth and wealth and options that we have in our bowling line-up and what's working on the night. It's really nice to have that. We've gone in with a spin-heavy attack. I haven't played there (Delhi) for a long time, we've got the luxury of seeing a game there tomorrow night and getting a little bit of handle on what we might expect. We've got some local knowledge within the group as well who know how those conditions play. Tonight, our focus at the moment is to play in these conditions and then after that we'll be able to switch to what we are going to face in Delhi.
Pitch Report | Anjum Chopra: "You bat here in the Chinnaswamy Stadium, it's always good because the clay content over here on any of the pitches is very nice. It's locally sourced from Mandya. A lot of batters like to hit the ball down the ground and it's good for seam bowling as well. However, the average score on the pitch tonight is not that great - 123. Tonight as well it gives me an indication it's a bit damp because the moisture content is slightly higher. It can just hold up slightly, the advantage for the spinners in the initial part of the game is there. Most teams like to chase because one side of the ground is slightly shorter than the other side (48m and 61m square boundaries, 63m straight). The advantage hasn't been taken by the batters so far in the tournament. The Captain might want to bowl first here."
18:30 Local Time, 13:00 GMT, 18:30 IST:
Preview
Out of the ten matches played so far in the 2024 edition of the WPL, only three have been won by teams batting first. And one of them featured Royal Challengers Bangalore and UP Warriorz, with the latter falling short of the target by three runs. RCB went on to win another game while UPW registered a second loss in their next encounter but the fortunes of both teams have changed since then.
With two successive wins, both facile ones at that, the Warriorz find themselves placed third at the moment with a positive net run rate while Royal Challengers registered losses against both Delhi Capitals and Mumbai Indians to slip to the fourth spot on the points table.
With powerful performances with the bat in their two wins, and also making the most of their spin heavy attack, the Warriorz will approach this game, which is supposed to be their home match, against Royal Challengers with a lot of confidence even though the fan support will be one-sided. That might also put added pressure on Smriti Mandhana and Co; the team's middle order hasn't quite fired, with the reliance on all-rounders adding to the imbalance that has affected RCB.
When: Monday, March 4, at 7:30 PM IST
Where: Chinnaswamy stadium, Bengaluru
What to expect: This will be the final match of WPL 2024 in Bengaluru before the teams shift base to Delhi for the remainder of the tournament. Going by the skewed results of the previous matches, it is safe to say that the toss will play a crucial role with chasing being the preferred option.
Team news:
Royal Challengers Bangalore: Despite the concerns with the batting, RCB do not have much room for change in the top order considering the composition of their squad. They are likely to stick to the same combination.
UP Warriorz: Chamari Athapaththu's inclusion in the previous match further strengthened UPW's spin attack as she finished with frugal figures and also displayed her prowess with the bat, albeit for a limited time. Tahlia McGrath had to make way for the Sri Lankan and it is likely that the Australian all-rounder will find herself on the bench for this match as well.
"Sophie has been a quality player for so long. I would love for her to get the scores that she has been for long periods of time. The other night against Delhi, she started to get going and then she got out to a full-toss. An uncharacteristic way. She's working really hard, and we're really confident that Smriti and Sophie in that opening combination is really powerful - left-right combination and we're confident we'll get good starts at the backend of the competition." - RCB head coach Luke Williams is confident that Sophie Devine will turn her form around.
"It's an amazing atmosphere. Even as the opposition side it gives you a real buzz to know that the fans are getting right behind the team, and that the RCB girls are going quite well as well. So it's helped them. But I think the crowds and the atmosphere has been amazing. TO have the amount of people that we did, playing against Gujarat, was pretty cool." - UPW captain Alyssa Healy is impressed with the crowd turnout.
Squads:
Royal Challengers Bangalore Women Squad: Smriti Mandhana(c), Sophie Devine, Sabbhineni Meghana, Ellyse Perry, Richa Ghosh(w), Sophie Molineux, Georgia Wareham, Shreyanka Patil, Simran Bahadur, Asha Sobhana, Renuka Thakur Singh, Ekta Bisht, Kate Cross, Nadine de Klerk, Disha Kasat, Indrani Roy, Shubha Satheesh, Shraddha Pokharkar
Royal Challengers Bangalore Women
UP Warriorz
