Fantasy: Back Smriti Mandhana to come good

After suffering losses in their opening two games of the season, Gujarat Giants (GG) and Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) look to get their campaign back on track on Wednesday (March 8) at the Brabourne Stadium, Mumbai.  

With Beth Mooney likely to miss out after sustaining an injury in the first game, Sneh Rana could lead GG once again, and she will be up against Smriti Mandhana’s side, who have been far from their best in the opening two games. This will be GG’s first match at the Brabourne Stadium, having played their first two games at the DY Patil Stadium.

Ground details

Traditionally, the Brabourne Stadium has assisted the pacers, but it has assisted the spinners in the WPL so far. Both pacers and spinners have picked up 10 wickets apiece in the tournament, but the latter have done so at a better economy rate (9.1) and strike-rate (17.2). 

The pacers, on the other hand, have conceded at 9.5 an over and have struck once every 24.8 deliveries. Teams winning the toss will be tempted to bat first here given that the average score has been 189. Dew has not played a significant part just yet in the tournament and the team bowling second would certainly back themselves to defend whatever they put on the board.

Suggested team

While you could go for the above team, you can also choose your team from Cricket.com’s Fantasy Research Centre. You can use this tool to build your team with the help of algorithms. Then, based on your preferences, the platform will guide you through creating the ideal fantasy XI.

Captaincy Suggestion

For Small leagues: Smriti Mandhana (captain), Ashleigh Gardner (vice-captain)

For Grand leagues: Harleen Deol (captain), Dayalan Hemalatha (vice-captain)

Stats that matter    

With 23 and 35, Smriti Mandhana has gotten off to starts in both the WPL matches so far, but by her own admission, she needs to convert them into something substantial. She has scored 1,046 runs at a strike-rate of 126.2 in T20s in India and at the Brabourne, she has struck at an average of 55.33 and a strike-rate of close to 170 while batting first. This could very well be the game Mandhana turns things around and finally delivers in the WPL.

Ashleigh Gardner has had two forgettable matches in the WPL so far. She has managed just one wicket and has scored 25 runs across two innings in the tournament so far. The player of the tournament in the recently concluded Women’s T20 World Cup. Since 2021, Gardner has scored 361 runs at a strike-rate of 140 and with the ball has picked up 26 wickets at an economy rate of well under six for Australia in T20Is. She is someone you cannot ignore.

Grand League Punts

Harleen Deol’s cameo of 46 off 32 deliveries against UP Warriorz was indeed a treat to watch and the India batter will hope to continue her good form in this game as well. No. 3 is her preferred slot in T20s, having scored over 400 runs in that position at 28.8 and a strike-rate of 106. She also has an excellent record against the spinners and could be a handy weapon, especially in the middle-overs.

Dayalan Hemalatha has played a couple of eye-catching knocks in the WPL so far. She scored an unbeaten 23-ball 29 in the first game against Mumbai Indians and then followed it up with 21 not out of 13 against the UP Warriorz. She can be used as a handy finisher and her off-spin has been useful at the death as she has conceded under five an over and picked up six wickets in 8.2 overs in T20s in that phase.

Here are the top 10 Criclytics projection

Predicted XI: 

Gujarat Giants: Sabbineni Meghana, Sophia Dunkley, Annabel Sutherland, Kim Garth, Ashleigh Gardner, Harleen Deol, Dayalan Hemalatha, Sneh Rana (Captain), Mansi Joshi, Sushma Verma, Tanuja Kanwer.

Royal Challengers Bangalore: Smriti Mandhana (Captain), Sophie Devine, Ellyse Perry, Disha Kasat, Richa Ghosh (wk), Heather Knight, Kanika Ahuja, Megan Schutt, Shreyanka Patil, Preeti Bose, Renuka Thakur Singh.