RCB bowls in the season’s first match, Deandra Dottin makes her debut for the Giants

Royal Challengers Bengaluru opted to bowl against Gujarat Giants.

Smriti Mandhana made the right call at the toss, with Royal Challengers Bengaluru, the reigning champions, choosing to bowl first against the Gujarat Giants at Vadodara. Mandhana was eager to “maximize the number of overs before the dew sets in.”

RCB are undermanned due to injuries to three crucial players – Sophie Molineux, Shreyanka Patil, and Asha Sobhana – who were their top-performing bowlers during their championship journey last year.

England batter Danni Wyatt-Hodge, acquired from UP Warriorz, seamer VJ Joshitha, who was a member of the Under-19 World Cup winning squad in Malaysia, batter Raghvi Bisht, and legspinner Prema Rawat all made their debuts.

Ellyse Perry, who entered the tournament after recently dealing with a hip injury, was ready to begin for RCB.

The Giants also made adjustments, which wasn’t entirely unexpected considering how they overhauled their team during the auction. They conferred a maiden cap to West Indies allrounder Deandra Dottin, marking her entry into the WPL two seasons after her controversial withdrawal from the team.

Ashleigh Gardner, the newly appointed captain, also revealed debuts for India legspinner Priya Mishra, seamer Kashvee Gautam, batter Simran Shaikh, and seamer Sayali Satghare, who has just recently debuted for India.

Kashvee and Shaikh are major signings for the Giants. Selected for INR 2 crore prior to WPL 2024, Kashvee was sidelined for the season because of an injury. Shaikh enters with a reputation as a powerful hitter late in the lineup and was acquired for INR 1.9 crore in December.

This marks the inaugural occasion that the WPL will take place in Vadodara, the Giants’ home ground. Following two finishes at the bottom, they will aspire for improved outcomes this season, having overhauled both their team and coaching structure.

Gujarat Giants: 1 Laura Wolvaardt, 2 Beth Mooney (wk), 3 Dayalan Hemalatha, 4 Ashleigh Gardner (capt), 5 Deandra Dottin, 6 Harleen Deol, 7 Simran Shaikh, 8 Tanuja Kanwar, 9 Sayali Satghare, 10 Priya Mishra, 11 Kashvee Gautam.

Royal Challengers Bengaluru: 1 Smriti Mandhana (captain), 2 Danielle Wyatt-Hodge, 3 Ellyse Perry, 4 Raghvi Bist, 5 Richa Ghosh (wicketkeeper), 6 Kanika Ahuja, 7 Georgia Wareham, 8 Kim Garth, 9 Prema Rawat, 10 VJ Joshitha, 11 Renuka Singh.