Vadodara: Mumbai Indians held off a stunning late assault from Richa Ghosh to beat Royal Challengers Bengaluru by 15 runs in a thrilling 2026 Women’s Premier League (WPL) clash at the BCA Stadium in Vadodara on Monday.
Chasing 200, RCB collapsed to 35/5 in the powerplay as Hayley Matthews and Shabnim Ismail tore through the top order, leaving the side in huge danger of suffering a big hit to their net run rate. But Richa had other ideas, as she launched a breathtaking counter-attack, smashing 90 off 50 balls with 10 fours and six sixes to nearly pull off an improbable victory.
After crawling to 55 off 40 balls in 18 overs, Ghosh exploded in the final two, plundering 35 runs to give MI a genuine scare before falling agonisingly short of a win by being dismissed on the last ball, as RCB ended up making 184/9.
Apart from those last two overs, it was a commanding performance from MI, who have kept their playoff hopes alive. Hayley returned with figures of 3-10, as the win lifted MI back to second place on the points table.
Nat Sciver-Brunt had earlier struck the first century in WPL’s history to propel MI to a formidable 199/4. After Hayley and Shabnim did the early damage, Richa found support from Nadine de Klerk and Arundhati Reddy in the middle order, but the early damage proved to be too severe despite her late heroics.
The defeat marks RCB’s second consecutive loss after winning their opening five matches. For MI, the victory provided a crucial confidence boost in a must-win encounter, with their senior players delivering when it mattered most despite the late wobble.
The game will find a special mention in the history books, as batting all-rounder Nat etched her name into the record books by becoming the first batter to score a century in the WPL. After 1059 days and 82 matches, the WPL finally witnessed its first centurion, and fittingly, it was achieved by Nat, who also registered her maiden T20 hundred.
Walking in early, she absorbed the pressure before shifting gears with sublime strokeplay and sizzling timing to dismantle the RCB attack in an unbeaten 57-ball century laced with 16 fours and a six. Partnering with Hayley, who made a 39-ball 56, Nat ensured MI surged past the previous highest total at the venue this season.
The duo stitched a 131-run stand, with boundaries flowing freely once they settled in. Though Hayley departed after getting her fifty, Nat carried on to reach the magical three-figure mark in the final over.
RCB’s bowling unit endured a tough outing, with only Lauren Bell managing some control and picking 2-21 in her four overs. The rest of them struggled with their lengths, either too full or too short, and were punished accordingly by MI’s batters.
Sent in to bat first, Sajeevan Sajana struck an early boundary but was trapped lbw by Lauren Bell in the third over. Nat then joined Hayley, and the pair stitched together a commanding stand. The duo took time to settle before opening up in the middle overs.
Sciver-Brunt’s fluent strokeplay, especially through the leg-side, and Hayley’s acceleration saw MI surge past the 100-run mark in the 12th over. Hayley completed her half-century but was bowled by Lauren for 56, ending a fine partnership that had put MI firmly in control.
Skipper Harmanpreet Kaur kept the tempo high with a brisk 20 off 12 balls, striking two fours and a six, before falling to Nadine de Klerk. Amanjot Kaur chipped in briefly, but the spotlight remained on Sciver-Brunt, who continued to dominate the RCB attack.
Boundaries flowed freely as Sciver-Brunt raced into the 90s. She brought up her maiden T20 hundred and the first-ever century in WPL history in the penultimate over with a single through long-off and finished unbeaten on 100 off 57 balls. Though Amanjot was castled by Shreyanka Patil, MI closed on 199/4, the highest total at the venue this season.
MI struck early with the ball when Shabnim had Grace Harris, who earlier hit Sciver-Brunt for a hat-trick of fours, in the third over, by having caught behind by Rahila Firdous. Hayley compounded RCB’s woes by dismissing skipper Smriti Mandhana and Georgia Voll in quick succession. More cheer was in store for MI when Gautami Naik was bowled by Shabnim, while Radha Yadav fell for a two-ball duck to Hayley, as RCB were five down in power-play.
Nadine de Klerk attempted a fightback with 28 off 20 balls, striking a six and three boundaries, but was undone by Amelia Kerr’s googly in the 11th over. When Arundhati Reddy and Sayali Satghare departed in successive deliveries from Amanjot Kaur, it left RCB at 129/8.
At the other end, Richa fought a lone battle. She began cautiously but accelerated after the halfway mark, cutting and lofting for her boundaries. She reached her half-century with a six over sweeper cover off Nat and then launched a stunning counterattack in the death overs.
Ghosh smashed three consecutive sixes off Amanjot Kaur in the 18th over, followed by two more maximums and a four off Kerr in the penultimate over, raising hopes of an improbable win. But she was eventually caught by Sanskriti Gupta off Amelia for a magnificent 90, as RCB’s challenge resulted in another defeat for them.
Brief scores:
Mumbai Indians 199/4 in 20 overs (Nat Sciver-Brunt 100 not out, Hayley Matthews 56; Lauren Bell 2-21, Shreyanka Patil 1-34) beat Royal Challengers Bengaluru 184/9 in 20 overs (Richa Ghosh 90, Nadine de Klerk 28; Hayley Matthews 3-10, Shabnim Ismail 2-25) by 15 runs
(This report has been published as part of the auto-generated syndicate wire feed. Apart from the headline, no editing has been done in the copy by ABP Live.)
