Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) skipper Smriti Mandhana feels that the Bangalore-based team has been waiting for that elusive trophy, be it in the WPL or IPL despite having a massive fan following in the league, and believes that women’s cricket has climbed up in ranks in the last 7 to 8 years.
While the inaugural edition of the Women’s Premier League (WPL 2023) was a big success, it was not as memorable as the Royal Challengers Bangalore Women’s (RCB) had intended, given the superstars in the team. They were one of the first teams to be eliminated, winning only two of their eight games, and securing only four points in the tournament.
Speaking to Sportskeeda, Smriti Mandhana feels that Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) has started fresh in the Women’s Premier League and hopes to win the championship for the RCB’s loyal fans. She believes that a lot of good things have happened in Women’s Cricket in the last 7 to 8 years and also highlighted that equal pay is being paid for both men’s and women’s cricket apart from the introduction of the WPL.
“For us as RCB women’s team, we are all starting it as new. We are not thinking about what has happened in terms of RCB as a franchise. Definitely, RCB is a massive franchise, and the only thing more than pressure, if we go on to win the title, the kind of happiness that the loyal RCB fans will get is something which I am looking forward to.”
“The change (in women’s cricket) has been massive in the last 7-8 years, but the massive change I would say is the way people are looking at women’s cricket and that is a really good thing. They are appreciating and criticizing us as well which is good because they feel attached to us. Apart from WPL and equal pay, I think this has been one massive change in the way people watch women’s cricket,” Smriti Mandhana said.
Despite fielding a good lineup almost every season, the Bangalore-based franchise has yet to win the championship. They qualified for three IPL finals and one CLT20 summit match but lost all four. They’ve even appeared in the Champions League T20 on several occasions. RCB also made their debut in the Women’s Premier League (WPL) earlier this year.
I Think Kumar Sangakkara Has Been A Big Inspiration To Me – Smriti Mandhana
Smriti Mandhana stated that she idolized former Sri Lankan captain Kumar Sangakkara on her journey to becoming a professional cricketer. She also talked about how T20 cricket has helped the Indian team reach new heights.
“I think Kumar Sangakkara has been a big inspiration to me in terms of batting. I don’t think there can be only one cricket you can watch and feel that he/she is changing the way the game is played, but I feel T20 cricket has done that. There are so many extraordinary Indian cricketers as well,” Smriti Mandhana added.
With only two victories from eight games, RCB finished fourth in the WPL 2023 season. Smriti Mandhana’s led side will be hoping to assemble a formidable team during the auction, vying for the elusive trophy in the WPL 2024.