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Ghosh upstages Gardner as RCB beat Gujarat in WPL opener

cricket14 February 2025 18:24| © MWP
By:Ross Roche
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Indian star Richa Ghosh upstaged Australian star Ash Gardner as the Royal Challengers Bangalore got their Women’s Premier League title defence off to a flying start with a stunning six-wicket win over the Gujarat Giants in the competition opener at the Kotambi Stadium in Vadodara on Friday night.

Ghosh crashed an incredible unbeaten 64 off just 27 balls, hammering four sixes and seven fours, as she helped RCB chase down a daunting 202-run target with nine balls to spare.

She shared in an amazing unbeaten 93-run fifth-wicket partnership off just 37 balls with Kanika Ahuja, 30* off 13 (4x4), as they made the win look easy after they looked in a spot of bother on 109-4 in the 13th over.

In the end it was unfortunate for Gujarat and their captain Gardner, who would have thought they were on course for a win after her heroics with the bat and start with the ball.

At the start of play RCB won the toss and chose to field, but were put to the sword by Aussie teammates Gardner, who smashed eight sixes and three fours in her unbeaten 37-ball 79, and Beth Mooney, 56 off 42 (8x4), as they amassed 201-5 in their 20 overs.

Gujarat’s innings got off to a steady start thanks to Mooney, with 30 runs coming off the opening four overs, before Renuka Singh bowled Laura Wolvaardt (6), and Ahuja had Dayalan Hemalatha caught by Prema Rawat at backward point as they slipped to 42-2 in the seventh over.

That brought Gardner in to join Mooney and they set about a 44-run stand, dominated by Mooney who powered past 50, before she picked out Smriti Mandhana at midwicket off the bowling of Rawat, leaving them on 85-3.

Deandra Dottin, 25 off 13 (3x4; 1x6), and Gardner then shared in the innings' biggest partnership of 67 runs, as the captain crunched her way to her half century and they cruised past the 150 mark in the 17th over, with Dottin out straight after finding the deep-midwicket fielder off Singh.

Simran Shaik, 11 off five (1x4; 1x6), and Harleen Deol, 9* off four (2x4), chipped in with small cameos down the back end to help Gardner get them past 200.

DISASTROUS START FOR RCB

The RCB chase then got off to a disastrous start as Gardner struck twice in the second over, trapping Mandhana (9) LBW and bowling Dani Wyatt-Hodge (4), to reduce the visitors to 14-2.

Ellyse Perry, 57 off 34 balls (6x4; 2x6), and Raghvi Bist (25) then steadied the ship with an 86-run second-wicket partnership off 54 balls to get the chase back on track.

Bist faced 27 balls in her innings, but crucially stuck around with Perry and fed her the strike, allowing them to reach 100 before she was caught at square leg by Sayali Satgahare off Dottin, and Perry caught on the long on fence by Wolvaardt off the bowling of Satgahare, as they stumbled.

But that just brought Ghosh and Ahuja together and they proceeded to rain down boundaries over the rest of the innings as they clinched an unbelievable win to get the third season of the WPL off to a rip-roaring start.

GUJARAT GIANTS: Laura Wolvaardt, Beth Mooney (wk), Dayalan Hemalatha, Ash Gardner (capt), Deandra Dottin, Harleen Deol, Simran Shaikh, Tanuja Kanwar, Sayali Satghare, Priya Mishra, Kashvee Gautam

ROYAL CHALLENGERS BANGALORE: Smriti Mandhana (capt), Danni Wyatt-Hodge, Ellyse Perry, Raghvi Bist, Richa Ghosh (wk), Kanika Ahuja, Georgia Wareham, Kim Garth, Prema Rawat, VJ Joshitha, Renuka Singh

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