Royal Challengers Bangalore vs Gujarat Giants Highlights: Sophie Devine’s blitzkrieg propels RCB to 8-wicket win over Gujarat | Cricket News – Times of India

NEW DELHI: Sophie Devine clubbed 99 from just 36 balls to shape Royal Challengers Bangalore’s emphatic eight-wicket victory over Gujarat Giants in the Women’s Premier League at Brabourne Stadium in Mumbai on Saturday.
After languishing at the bottom of the table so far in the tournament, RCB climbed to fourth place with the second win in a row and stayed alive in the competition.
Dashboard | As it happened
RCB went home with 27 balls to spare in their pursuit of 189. The rampage began when Devine took Ashleigh Gardner to the cleaners as she tallied 24 runs in the second inning. RCB sailed 77/0 inside the power play.
Guess and Smriti Mandhana put 125 in 10 overs before the RCB skipper was fired for 37. But Devine couldn’t stop as she made Gujarat bowling look ordinary with her 9 fours and 8 towering sixes including a 94 meters – the largest in the tournament.
Devine, who also represented New Zealand in hockey before debuting in cricket as a batting bowler often at number 11, played what will go down as one of the finest in the history of the T20 format.

Earlier, South Africa’s star batsman Laura Wolvaardt netted with a scintillating 42-ball 68 ahead of a 22-run final against the Gujarat giants at 188 for four.
Ashleigh Gardner (41 from 26 balls) also played a quick hit before Harleen Deol (12 not out) and Dayalan Hemalatha (16 not out) ended GG’s innings by smashing a distraught Megan Schutt for two sixes and two fours.
Chasing a stiff target, RCB got off to a flying start with the opening duo of skipper Smriti Mandhana (37) and Sophie Devine sending the GG bowlers on the hunt for leather with their jaw-dropping stick.

While there were countless sixes and fours, the highlight was Devine’s maximum against left-arm spinner Tanuja Kanwar, smoking her over midwicket for the tournament’s biggest six at 94 yards.
A four and two more sixes followed from Devine’s Willow as RCB ran to 125 for no loss in just the ninth.
It was over after New Zealand’s Devine crushed Harleen Deol on an 86-yard six to bring her half-century up with just 20 balls.
The 100 was up in the eighth and what looked like a towering total at the start of the RCB rounds now looked well within reach.

While Mandhana, who also gave Kanwar some harsh treatment by hitting her for a six and two fours in an 18-point first, came out after 37 balls 31, nothing could stop Devine as she punished Ashwani Kumari with a six and a four.
Ultimately, it was Kim Garth who ended Devine’s stunt, but by then she had already paved the way for RCB victory.
Earlier, batting first after Sneh Rana won the toss, Sophia Dunkley and Laura Wolvaardt showed positive intention early on, hitting two limits apiece in the first two overs.
However, one ball after shooting Sophie Devine over the midwicket for a four, Dunkley’s leg stump was knocked down after the batter shuffled too much to play the scoop shot on the thin leg at proper length.
Unfazed by the backhand, Wolvaardt looked to control the innings and found the fence twice more to bring GG to 40 for one out of five.
Introduced in attack, Ellyse Perry started on a high and gave away just one of her first five balls, before conceding a limit on a half-volley at Brabourne Stadium. Nonetheless, it was a good pass from Perry.
Asha Shobana, the leg spinner, also had an orderly first, conceding, like Perry, just five points.
After spending time in the middle, Sabbhineni Meghana broke the shackles with a limit from Preeti Bose’s first delivery to eighth. However, Bose came back well and gave up four points on his next five balls.
Bose severed the 63-point partnership between Meghana and Wolvaardt when the bowler brought down the Indian batter by Richa Ghosh in what looked like a lazy dismissal.
Ashleigh Gardner came in and she meant business right away, hitting Asha for a six on long even as Wolvaardt on the other end continued to rack up the run and hit his half-century with 35 balls, reaching the scores with a six on midwicket against Perry.
Wolvaardt then charged into Megan Schutt, smashing her for a six and a four, but Shreyanka Patil ended her innings when the South African hit a low, full kick straight to Bose at short midwicket.
Gardner then took it upon herself to end GG’s innings on a high, hitting a flurry of four before lbw out to Patil.
(With PTI inputs)