Mumbai Indians skipper Harmanpreet Kaur feels that a boundary in the final two overs could have shifted the momentum on their side following their loss in the eliminator clash against the Royal Challengers Bangalore in the Women’s Premier League on Friday. In the final three overs, the defending champions failed to hit a single boundary and lost three wickets even with the likes of Harmanpreet, Sajana and Amelia Kerr on the crease. After the game, Harmanpreet hailed their performance with the ball as they managed to restrict RCB to a sub-par score of 135/6.
She went on to admit that their batters failed to hold their nerves in the final two overs during which they needed just 16 runs to win.
“We bowled well, we restricted them to under 140. batting was also good but in the last 12 balls, we did not bat well. In 12 balls, we needed just one boundary, we could not be able to get that. This game always teaches you and puts you under pressure, you need to learn from it. When we lost my wicket, our batters could not hold their nerve, that was the turning point,” Harmanpreet said after the game.
“We fought hard, this season has been up and down for us, last season we did really well but we learnt a lot and hopefully next season we will prepare well and come back hard,” she added.
Throughout the game, RCB were on the back foot, but their ability to keep the run rate in check proved to be a major factor in their success.
During MI’s chase of 136, with sheer resilience, RCB stayed in the game and kept their lengths tight making MI work hard for each boundary. In the end, MI batters’ nerves dwindled which led to a 5-run win for RCB.
With this win, RCB will face Delhi Capitals in the final of the second season of the Women’s Premier League on Sunday.
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