Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) and UP Warriorz (UPW) will face off in Match 8 of the Women’s Premier League (WPL) 2023. The much-anticipated conflict is booked to be played at the Brabourne Arena in Mumbai on Friday (Walk 10).
RCB’s performance thus far in the tournament has been largely subpar, as they have lost each of their three matches. They will want to win the WPL for the first time and snap a long losing streak.
In contrast, in their previous outing, UPW suffered their first defeat of the tournament against the high-flying Delhi Capitals (DC). The captain, Alyssa Healy, will be hoping to return to winning ways against a Bangalore team that is under pressure.
On the previous occasion, the Brabourne Stadium’s pitch proved to be a happy one for batters, and it is anticipated that it will remain so today. However, bowlers may be able to exert pressure on batters by using tight lines and lengths.
In light of this, let’s take a look at the three bowlers who are likely to take wickets in the UPW-RCB match.
3 Shabnim Ismail – UPW
South African ace pacer Shabnim Ismail looked impressive when he took the place of Grace Harris in the previous game. The seamer was more economical than the other players, even though she only took one wicket. Ismail only conceded 29 runs against the Delhi Capitals (DC) in her four overs, whereas every other UPW bowler lost runs at a rate greater than 10 per over.
The 34-year-old, widely regarded as the fastest pacer in women’s cricket, will attempt to deliver once more for her franchise tonight.
2 Megan Schutt – RCB
The bowling team at RCB has been pitiful thus far. In the two games they’ve played, they haven’t done much. Megan Schutt, one of their best bowlers, will be expected to stand out.
Schutt, who has 15 scalps in eight games so far this year and is the joint-highest wicket-taker in T20Is, had a difficult first two games for RCB. She did, however, play a decent game against Gujarat, taking her first WPL wicket and allowing fewer than nine runs per over.
Fans of RCB will be hoping that their star international pacer will perform even better. She has, after all, taken 245 wickets for her nation in international matches. Schutt will work hard to use her power against UPW.
1 Sophie Ecclestone – UPW
Sophie Ecclestone, the top-ranked T20I bowler, started the tournament against Gujarat with impressive figures of 2/25. She will, however, be hoping for a significant comeback after she gave up 41 runs in four overs in the previous game against DC.
The 23-year-old was the highest wicket-taker at the Women’s T20 World Cup 2023, taking 11 wickets at an impeccable average of less than 8.
It wouldn’t be out of the question for the left-arm spinner to take wickets against Bangalore on Friday given her cunning deception.