In a topsy-turvy WPL 2023 season for the Royal Challengers Bangalore Women, they eventually concluded the campaign with a defeat against the Mumbai Indians after their batters resigned in docile submission. With very little to defend on the scorecard, the bowlers tried their best but, in the end, would eventually tap out to MI’s batting unit.

With all said and done, there were a lot of positives that the RCB Women could take heart from for the future campaigns of the tournament, particularly as the overseas players blazed an extraordinary trail for the young guns to follow suit. Here are the highlights of the first WPL season for the Royal Challengers Bangalore Women.

Sophie Devine – 266 runs

From the eight matches that she played, Sophie Devine was in exemplary touch, racking up the highest number of runs for the Challengers with 266 runs at an average of 33.25 and a strike rate of 172.72. She smashed 32 fours and 13 sixes, seven of which came during her blitzkrieg against the Gujarat Giants, whacking 99 off just 36 balls.

Ellyse Perry – 253 runs

The Australian all-rounder was in phenomenal touch with the bat as she managed to smash around 253 runs from 8 games that also featured a couple of half-centuries and some swash-buckling shots. She scored at an average of 42.16 and a strike rate of 123.41. Although four wickets from eight matches don’t paint a pretty picture, Perry was also effective with the ball and inflicted some crucial strikes apart from also being a livewire on the field. 

Shreyanka Patil – 6 wickets

A young Shreyanka Patil impressed heavily with the ball as she bagged six crucial wickets for the Challengers with a best of 2/17. Although she was a touch expensive, she proved to be a terrific find for RCB with her ability to bowl in the middle overs and at the death. Shreyanka was also impressive with her bat, showcasing her skill to play tough shots when the situation demanded them, fuelling RCB’s score with her range of strokes.

Asha Sobhana – 5 wickets

She wasn’t a part of all the fixtures for RCB but she made good use of the opportunities that came her way. In a star-studded canvas, she painted the boldest snaps, bagging five scalps at an economy rate of 8.35, a number that would any day bag the winning ticket on tracks that heavily assisted the batters.

Richa Ghosh – 9 dismissals and 138 runs

Richa Ghosh couldn’t get off to those exemplifying starts that were expected of her with the bat but she was phenomenal with the gloves. She finished as the keeper with the third-highest dismissals in the tournament with nine to her name, seven of which were catches and the other two were stumpings. With the bat though, Ghosh did show some glimpses of her prowess and finished with a strike rate of 135.29, scoring 138 runs from eight matches.