"It was very kind of her to actually to come up and talk" - Smriti Mandhana recalls interaction with Meg Lanning during WPL 2023 

Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) women's team captain Smriti Mandhana opened up about her conversation with Delhi Capitals (DC) skipper Meg Lanning during the inaugural Women's Premier League (WPL) season.

The two captains were spotted talking by the boundary ropes after DC secured a last-over win over RCB in the 11th match of the WPL on March 13 at the DY Patil Stadium.

The contest marked RCB's fifth successive loss, which left them in an almost impossible place to qualify for the playoffs.

Recalling Lanning asked how she was doing after RCB's horrid start to the season, Mandhana said in an interaction with Sportstar:

"It was very kind of her to actually to come up and talk. I was just standing there, waiting for a few of the Delhi girls, and she just walked up to me and asked if I am alright, and how am I doing? I said that there are lot of lessons to be learned, then we started talking about batting and how cricket can be cruel at times and how it is amazing at times, those kind of experiences that she has also gone through."

Jess Jonassen's heroics in the death overs prevented RCB from securing their first win on that day. However, the Mandhana-led side bounced back after the defeat with two successive wins to avoid finishing at the bottom of the table.

Stating that she asked Lanning about how to balance captaincy with batting, Mandhana continued:

"We also talked about how to balance captaincy with batting, because you are expected to score runs as well as lead your side. She has done that for Australia for quite a long time, so I asked how do you actually manage to do that? It was just amazing, where two cricketers just having that sort of a conversation. She told me a few things about my batting which she noticed and it was an amazing conversation to have."

The left-handed opening batter is still relatively young to captaincy when compared to the veteran Lanning.

The Australian ace has led Australia for a while now and is exhibiting how to balance captaincy with batting in the WPL as well by leading DC to the finals as well as holding the Orange Cap in the process.

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"I've always looked up to her as a batter and as a captain" - Smriti Mandhana on Meg Lanning

Smriti Mandhana was the most expensive acquisition at the inaugural WPL auction. She was roped in by the RCB for ₹3.4 crore following an intense bidding war with the Mumbai Indians (MI).

However, she had a forgettable tournament, scoring only 149 runs off eight matches without a single fifty to her name.

Admitting that she has always looked up to Meg Lanning as a batter as well as a captain, Mandhana said:

"I've always looked up to her as a batter and as a captain because I think when I made by debut, she was the premier batter for Australia. She used to score runs for fun, like for those two to three years, I think, whenever you opened the scorecard, you would see a 70,80 or a 100 to her name."

Delhi Capitals will meet the winner between Mumbai Indians and UP Warriorz in the final on Sunday, March 26.

Will RCB bounce back in the second edition of the WPL? Let us know what you think.