Renuka Singh Thakur finally makes her mark in WPL, Smriti Mandhana dazzles home crowd as RCB win 2 in 2 | Cricket News
Renuka Singh Thakur’s addition to the Royal Challengers Bangalore squad last year was seen as a significant achievement for the franchise. Before the first season of the Women’s Premier League, Renuka had had a stunning 2022 picking up 40 wickets in 29 matches across white-ball formats.
But when WPL 2023 began, Renuka – like most of the RCB bowling unit – struggled. In the 16.4 overs she bowled last season, she picked up a solitary wicket, conceded 9.54 runs per over, and had an average of 159.
On Tuesday at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium, Renuka doubled her wicket-tally from 2023 as she bowled a match-winning opening spell against Gujarat Giants. With figures of 2/14 in a four-over burst at the start of the match, Renuka pegged the Giants back from where they never recovered, posting 107/7 in 20 overs. It took just 12.3 overs for RCB to chase it down as Smriti Mandhana entertained a raucous crowd with her best knock in the WPL yet, smashing a boundary-filled 43.
Shuffles across and smacks a maximum 💥@RCBTweets captain Smriti Mandhana is leading from the front & HOW 🔥
Match Centre 💻📱 https://t.co/wV0BEgckTA#TATAWPL | #RCBvGG | @mandhana_smriti pic.twitter.com/IMAciGDORz
— Women’s Premier League (WPL) (@wplt20) February 27, 2024
The two players who perhaps summed up RCB’s struggles last season delivered against a hapless Giants side. And after starting 2023 with five defeats in a row, they have started this edition with back-to-back wins.
While Smriti’s batting form came under a lot of scrutiny, most of RCB’s struggles in the first year were down to the bowling unit underperforming. They did well to address that in the auction, with the shrewd addition of Australian spinners Sophie Molineux and Georgia Wareham, the former showing her class against Giants picking up 3/25 with her left-arm spin.
But the win was set up Renuka, as she dismissed two key left-handers bowling round the wicket. The first was Beth Mooney, as she got the ball to go in with the angle and rattle the stumps. The next was Phoebe Litchfield, getting the ball to move away this time and drawing the batter out to be stumped. Both were the result of the work Renuka put in at the National Cricket Academy since the home season ended.
Through the gates 🔥🔥
Renuka Singh gets the Chinnaswamy crowd going 🤩
Gujarat Giants lose Captain Beth Mooney.
Match Centre 💻📱 https://t.co/wV0BEgbN42#TATAWPL | #RCBvGG | @RCBTweets pic.twitter.com/vdw6vQpFZp
— Women’s Premier League (WPL) (@wplt20) February 27, 2024
“In India, just one kind of delivery will not help. We need more variations, so I have worked with (coach) Troy Cooley quite a bit to add on away-swinger, reverse-swinger and slower balls. That’s specifically why I wanted to go to the NCA, to work more on these and fitness,” Renuka had said before RCB’s first match. She added that she bowled a lot from round the wicket during that time.
While Smriti’s ball-striking against Giants is good news for RCB, Renuka’s opening burst would please them as much. One of Renuka’s strengths is dismissing opening batters through the gate, a sight Indian fans got used to in 2022. There were signs of her getting into that groove again, as she returned to international cricket in the home season after a lengthy injury layoff. Admittedly, it was her spell against the Giants where she felt she was truly back.
Brief scores: Gujarat Giants 107/7 in 20 overs (Dayalan Hemlatha 31; Sophie Molineaux 3/25, Renuka Singh 2/14) lost to Royal Challengers Bangalore 110/2 in 12.3 overs (Smriti Mandhana 43, Sabbhineni Meghana 36 not out) 8 wickets
