The Women's Premier League (WPL) 2024 is all set to get underway on February 23 (Friday) with a match between Mumbai Indians (MI) and Delhi Capitals (DC), a repeat of the last year's final. Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB), who had a disastrous season last year, will begin their campaign a day later when they lock horns with UP Warriorz on Saturday (February 24) at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru. Before their tournament opener, RCB head coach Luke Williams addressed the media at a pre-match press conference speaking about various aspects of the preparation heading into the season.
When asked about how big a role Ellyse Perry will have in a role in the side and whether she would be bowling despite not having as many overs under her belt in recent years, coach Williams confirmed that Perry would be playing as an all-rounder.
"Yeah, obviously a key player for us Ellyse (Perry) and has been a wonderful player so long now. A genuine all-rounder. Batting is crucial, we know how good she is on the field. Her recent bowling in the South Africa series, she may not have bowled as much as in other years but I feel she is in a very good space with her bowling. She will certainly have a role to play with the ball," Williams told the reporters.
Biggest Learning Getting To Know Domestic Players: Luke Williams
The biggest learning for RCB head coach Luke Williams from the 10-day pre-season camp was getting to know the domestic players and spending time with each one of them.
"We have learnt a lot about each other and the team. A lot of off-field interactions have been planned whether they have been meetings and discussions or coffees and these sort of things but other times they have been unplanned in team room and in spending time together. Those two parts have been a key component of our camp," Williams, not new to T20 coaching by any stretch of the imagination with a Women's Big Bash League (BBL) title to his credit with the Adelaide Strikers, said.
On Equation With Smriti Mandhana
Williams said that he has worked with Mandhana previously as he was the assistant coach at the Southern Brave franchise in the 100-ball cricket competition where Mandhana was a player. While Mandhana did not fire with the bat in the first season, managing only manage 149 runs from eight matches, William is confident about her ahead of the season opener.
"She’s practising really well. She’s in a really confident and happy space with her cricket and the leadership. Obviously, there’s responsibility with captaining and opening the batting.
"But she’s got plenty of support from the team with lots of experienced seniors to help her and trying to really separate the two roles," Williams said.
RCB managed to win only 2 matches from their 8 games and failed to make it to the Playoffs. They begin their campaign against UP Warriorz who reached the Playoffs with 4 wins from 8 matches but were knocked out by MI in the Eliminator.