WPL 2024: RCB star Sobhana Asha Became the First Indian to Take a 5 Wicket Haul

A thrilling start for RCB -

Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB), headed by Smriti Mandhana, had a strong start in the Women's Premier League (WPL) 2024, defeating UP Warriorz by two runs on February 24 at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru. Sobhana Asha broke UP Warriorz's back with a match-winning fifer, while Richa Ghosh and Sabbhineni Meghana sparkled with beautiful fifties to help RCB succeed.

RCB gave Warriorz a target of 158, and they finished their innings by scoring 12 runs in the last over. However, the match turned into a thriller, with Deepti Sharma on-strike, and UP Warriorz required five runs, similar to MI vs DC's battle in the WPL 2024 opening. But, like Sajeevan Sajana, Deepti was unable to secure the victory for her team, scoring only two runs off the final ball to see Warriorz lose to RCB.

Sobhana Asha scripts history -

In the first game of the season against UP Warriorz, 32-year-old Sobhana made history by becoming the first bowler from RCB to take five wickets in the WPL. Fans were delighted to see Asha's outstanding performance, with figures of 5/22, this spell not only impressed the former RCB leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal but also proved crucial in earning a victory for the home club in the new season. Sobhana Asha turned the direction of the match in the RCB's favour by capturing three wickets in a critical over.

It was a thrilling match especially the second last over was a nail-biting one. In contrast to the opening match of the season, when Sajeevan Sajana of the Mumbai Indians defeated the Delhi Capitals with a last-ball six, Deepti Sharma of the UP Warriorz was unable to repeat the feat against the RCB, needing five runs off the final ball. Grace Harris and Shweta Sehrawat put up 77 runs for the fourth wicket. But in the 17th over, Asha's leg-spinning genius broke this partnership, dismissing both batsmen as well as the dangerous Kiran Navgire, and the game was shifted in favor of RCB. Asha demonstrated her ability to take wickets in bunches when she dismissed Vrinda Dinesh and Tahila McGrath in the ninth over, dismantling the UP Warriorz's top order.

List of players with five-wicket hauls in WPL

Marizanne Kapp 5 for 15 for DC vs Gujarat Giants in 2023

Tara Norris - 5 for 29 for DC vs RCB in 2023

Kim Garth - 5 for 36 for Gujarat Giants vs UP Warriorz in 2023

Sobhana Asha - 5 for 22 for RCB vs UP Warriorz in 2024