MI-W vs RCB-W, WPL Preview: Mumbai eye back-to-back finals as Smriti Mandhana’s Royal Challengers stand in way
This will be the second consecutive meeting between the sides in three days, having also met in the final league match of the season where RCB won by seven wickets. The win, however, did not make any difference for the champions as they finished second in the league phase and will be the designated home team during Friday’s clash.
A win for Mumbai on Friday will see a repeat of the WPL 2023 edition final while RCB will try to put behind a poor 2023 season. Mumbai have a proud head-to-head record against RCB, having won three matches during the two seasons. However, the champions will be aware of Ellyse Perry’s threat having bagged figures of 15/6 and scoring 40 unbeaten in the last league match.
On the flip side, RCB will look to clinch a place in the final for the first time having finished third in the standings. They won four matches in the eight league matches and will look to book a place against Delhi Capitals on Sunday. Apart from Perry, Smriti Mandhana and Sophie Devine will be other players to watch.
Head-to-Head
Total Matches: 4
Mumbai Indians: 3 Win
Royal Challengers Bangalore: 1 Win
Form
Mumbai Indians: LWWLW
Royal Challengers Bangalore: WLLWL
Match Details
Match No: Mumbai Indians vs Royal Challengers Bangalore, Eliminator
Location: Arun Jaitley Stadium, New Delhi
Time Start: 7:30 PM with toss taking place at 7:00 PM
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Result Prediction
Considering the head-to-head records, between the sides Mumbai Indians have the upper hand, however, Royal Challengers have momentum on their side. RCB beat Mumbai for the first time in their last league match and will be full of confidence. We predict RCB to beat MI as they have momentum heading into the Eliminator.
Predicted XIs of both teams
Mumbai Indians:
Yastika Bhatia (wk), Hayley Matthews, Nat Sciver-Brunt, Issy Wong, Amelia Kerr, Pooja Vastrakar, Amanjot Kaur, Sajeevan Sajana, Harmanpreet Kaur (c), Keerthana Balakrishnan, Saika Ishaque
Royal Challengers Bangalore:
Smriti Mandhana (c), Sophie Devine, Sabbhineni Meghana, Nadine de Klerk, Richa Ghosh (wk), Georgia Wareham, Sophie Molineux, Shreyanka Patil, Simran Bahadur, Asha Sobhana, Renuka Thakur
