The Women’s Premier League heads to Navi Mumbai as Royal Challengers Bengaluru Women look to make it three wins in a row when they meet Gujarat Giants Women at the DY Patil Sports Academy on Friday evening. RCB arrive full of confidence after two dominant displays, while the Giants will be eager to respond after a narrow loss to Mumbai Indians.
Match snapshot
- Match: Gujarat Giants Women vs Royal Challengers Bengaluru Women — 9th match, WPL 2026
- Date & time: Friday, January 16 — 7:30 p.m. IST
- Venue: DY Patil Sports Academy, Navi Mumbai
- Telecast & streaming: Star Sports Network; live stream on JioCinema / JioHotstar
Gujarat Giants Women — form and concerns
The Giants began the season strongly, registering two convincing wins before running into trouble against Mumbai Indians. Against MI they posted a competitive 193/5 — boosted by late contributions from Georgia Wareham and Bharti Fulmali — but were overhauled thanks to Harmanpreet Kaur’s unbeaten 71. Gujarat currently sit third on the table and will need to tighten up their death bowling and middle-order support if they want to stay in the top pack.
Royal Challengers Bengaluru Women — confidence high
RCB have been impressive across the board. Their chase of 144 against UP Warriorz was wrapped up inside 13 overs thanks to Grace Harris’ blitz of 85 off 40. The bowling unit has also delivered, with Lauren Bell producing an economical four-over spell and Nadine de Klerk chipping in with important wickets. RCB top the standings and look balanced with power in the middle order and a varied bowling attack.
Pitch report — DY Patil Sports Academy
The pitch at DY Patil tends to be balanced. Early seam movement can trouble batters for the first few overs, but once set, it becomes easier to score. The outfield is quick, which rewards good stroke play, while spinners often play a role in the middle overs. A par or good total on this surface is usually around 170–180 in women’s T20s.
Weather forecast
Conditions are expected to be clear and humid with no rain interruptions predicted. Temperatures should hover near 31°C under mostly clear skies, so dew and evening conditions could play a part if the match goes the distance.
Head-to-head
- Matches played (T20): 6
- Gujarat Giants Women wins: 3
- Royal Challengers Bengaluru Women wins: 3
- Tied / No result: 0
The rivalry is evenly poised on paper, which promises a keenly contested game.
Probable XIs
Gujarat Giants Women
- Sophie Devine, Beth Mooney (wk), Ashleigh Gardner (c), Ayushi Soni, Kanika Ahuja, Bharti Fulmali, Georgia Wareham, Kashvee Gautam, Tanuja Kanwar, Rajeshwari Gayakwad, Renuka Singh Thakur
Royal Challengers Bengaluru Women
- Smriti Mandhana (c), Grace Harris, Dayalan Hemalatha, Richa Ghosh (wk), Radha Yadav, Nadine de Klerk, Arundhati Reddy, Shreyanka Patil, Prema Rawat, Linsey Smith, Lauren Bell
Players to watch
- Sophie Devine (GG): The New Zealand all‑rounder has been central to Gujarat’s success—141 runs in three matches and four wickets so far. She provides aggressive power in the powerplay and useful overs with the ball.
- Nadine de Klerk (RCB): A match-winner with both bat and ball. Her unbeaten 63* earlier in the tournament and six wickets make her one of RCB’s most influential players.
- Grace Harris (RCB): Capable of changing games in a session, Harris’ 85 off 40 showed how quickly she can take games away from opponents.
- Lauren Bell (RCB): Her tight spell (1/16) underlined RCB’s bowling depth; she can be a handful with the new ball.
Toss and match scenarios
At DY Patil, the last six women’s T20s saw the toss-winning captain opt to bowl first every time. Across 24 women’s T20s here, teams batting second have won 15 matches compared to 8 wins for teams batting first. That suggests a clear advantage for the side choosing to chase, likely due to a combination of the fast outfield and dew in the later stages.
Scenario 1 (Toss winner bowls first)
- Powerplay score: 40–45
- First-innings total: RCB 170–180
- Likely result: Gujarat Giants come through if they chase well
Scenario 2 (Toss winner bowls first)
- Powerplay score: 42–52
- First-innings total: Gujarat 160–170
- Likely result: RCB hold the edge thanks to stronger batting depth
Prediction
Both teams have strong line-ups, but Royal Challengers Bengaluru Women look slightly more complete at the moment. Their batting has been aggressive and consistent, the bowling attack has produced timely breakthroughs, and fielding standards have been high. On current form and balance, RCB are the favourites — but with players like Sophie Devine and Harmanpreet Kaur capable of turning games, Gujarat have every chance if they execute under pressure.