This is the first time that the WPL is being held in the January-February window. After winning the toss, skipper Smriti Mandhana said their overseas players will be Grace Harris, Lauren Bell, Linsey Smith, and Nadine de Klerk.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cDew plays a huge role at this venue, especially in the second half, and it\u2019s a ground where conditions can change quickly. We want to bowl tight lines early and restrict the opposition. It\u2019s been amazing.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cThe girls have gelled really well. It\u2019s a young group, the overseas players have settled in nicely, and it\u2019s been a fun environment. Everyone\u2019s worked extremely hard, and we\u2019re really excited to get started,\u201d she said.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
MI, the two-time winners, will be without the services of all-rounder Hayley Matthews due to illness, which means they will have a brand new opening combination in Nat Sciver-Brunt and G. Kamalini for starting their title defence.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cWe were also looking to bowl first, considering the dew later on. But it\u2019s the first game of the season, so we\u2019ll see how things go. It\u2019s been really good. We\u2019ve been practising for the last 10 days, and everyone looks in good touch. We\u2019ve got a well-balanced side, pretty similar to what we\u2019ve had over the last three seasons, so we\u2019re confident heading into the game,\u201d said captain Harmanpreet Kaur.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Playing XIs:<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cWe were also looking to bowl first, considering the dew later on. But it\u2019s the first game of the season, so we\u2019ll see how things go. It\u2019s been really good. We\u2019ve been practising for the last 10 days, and everyone looks in good touch. We\u2019ve got a well-balanced side, pretty similar to what we\u2019ve had over the last three seasons, so we\u2019re confident heading into the game,\u201d said captain Harmanpreet Kaur.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Royal Challengers Bengaluru: Smriti Mandhana (c), Grace Harris, Dayalan Hemalatha, Richa Ghosh (wk), Radha Yadav, Nadine de Klerk, Arundhati Reddy, Shreyanka Patil, Prema Rawat, Linsey Smith, and Lauren Bell<\/p>\r\n\r\n