‌WPL 2024 | Twitter erupts as Perry’s all-round heroics set up RCB’s finale in nail-biter

‌WPL 2024 | Twitter erupts as Perry’s all-round heroics set up RCB’s finale in nail-biter

SportsCafe Desk

By SportsCafe Desk, SportsCafe Editor

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Royal Challengers Bangalore beat Mumbai Indians by five runs in a humdinger in the Eliminator of WPL 2024. Ellyse Perry’s half-century set up a fighting total for RCB that their bowlers backed up well to diminish MI’s hope for a second final in a row, thereby cementing the final’s spot.

Brief Scores: RCB: 135/6 (20) [ Perry: 66 (50), Wareham: 18 (10); Matthews: 4-0-18-2] beat MI: 130/6 (20) [ Harmanpreet: 33 (30), Kerr: 27* (25); 4-0-16-2] by 5 runs.

Fortune favoured RCB during the toss and Smriti Mandhana went against bowling first despite their first win against Mumbai Indians while chasing in the latest encounter. Going back to their old opening combination Mandhana and Sophie Devine did fetch three fours in the first four balls of the innings but MI bowlers quickly turned it around with sharp bowling. Matthews cleaned up Devine in the second over, followed by Smriti holing in the deep off Nat Sciver-Brunt in the next and Disha Kasat departing in the fourth over with the score reading 24/3 in four overs. Following a 34-run powerplay, Richa Ghosh and Ellyse Perry could gather just 15 runs off the next three overs with Shabnim Ismail bowling a maiden, before the wicketkeeper-batter succumbed to the pressure in the tenth over. Between overs 8-12, RCB scored just nine runs without a boundary before Perry switched gear to up the ante. With the score reading 90/5 in 16 overs, the lower middle order added 46 runs in the last four overs with Perry smashing 66 off 50 to propel RCB to 136/6 in 20 overs. 

In response, the defending champions got off to a brisk start before Hayley Matthews fell to Shreyanka Patil in the fourth over in a 37-run powerplay. The RCB bowlers exerted pressure on Yastika Bhatia, who eventually succumbed following the field restrictions, followed by Wareham cleaning up set Natalie Sciver-Brunt in the eleventh over. With the score reading 69/3 in eleven overs, Harmanpreet (33) and Amelia Kerr added 52 runs together before the former holed out at the deep in a crucial juncture of the match. They required 20 runs from the last three overs when Shreyanka conceded just four runs and outwitted the opposition skipper, followed by Sophie Molineux’s brilliant four-run 19th over that got the better of S Sajana. With Kerr at one end, MI needed 12 off the last over when Asha Shobana induced just five runs and a wicket off as many balls leading to seven needed off the final delivery. The well-set Kerr failed to clear the ropes to take it to a super over, thereby handing RCB their first-ever final spot in WPL.

That celebration!

What a day!!

RRRRCCCCCBBBBBB!

That's how you do!

Yesssssss!!!!!

Hahaha!

What a match it was!

Can't believe?

We need to wait on it!

Agreed!

Just RCB RCB eveywhere!

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