Following RCB’s WPL 2024 victory, Smriti Mandhana becomes upset and Asha Shobana starts crying

Royal Challengers Bangalore ended their trophy drought on a Sunday night at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi with a historic Women’s Premier League victory. For RCB to have won a WPL championship since 2008, more than 16 years have passed. Following the victory, the squad as a whole, as well as RCB skipper Smriti Mandhana, were overcome with emotion.

When Richa Ghosh hit the winning four-over cover to defeat DC by eight wickets, RCB captain Praveen Kumar let out a loud cheer. The group hurried to the centre, where they exchanged embraces and broad grins to start the festivities. When Mandhana met her teammates, she too became emotional. Following the victory, famed spinner Asha Shobana was also spotted sobbing and giving pacer Kate Cross a hug.

After winning, Mandhana said, “Now it’s Ee Sala Cup Namdu.”
Notably, after her team’s championship win, the captain of the RCB opened her heart. She clarified the long-spoken term “Ee Sala Cup Namde” and said that the emotion of the victory has not yet fully settled in. “The feeling hasn’t yet really set in. It’s difficult for me to explain myself. I will say this: I’m proud of the group. We had a great Bangalore leg. We suffered two hard defeats when we arrived in Delhi. We discussed the necessity for us to take appropriate action when it is needed. The goal of these competitions is to peak at the ideal moment.

“We learned a lot of lessons from last year. What worked well and what didn’t? The management has told you to grow the team your way. Bravo to them. It means a lot more to RCB. The squad as a whole, not just myself, is the winner of the prize. I’m not the right person to discuss my feelings with. This may be in the top five. A World Cup would, of course, surpass it. Deliver a message to your most devoted audience, the fans. Ee Sala Cup Namde is a sentence that is often mentioned. Ee Sala Cup Namdu is on now. Although Kannada is not my native tongue, I felt it was necessary to express this to the supporters,” Mandhana told the broadcasters after the game.

Mandhana scored 31 runs off of 39 balls during the 114-run chase. The squad won with 17 runs off of 14 balls from Richa Ghosh, who was undefeated at 35. Earlier, some amazing bowling performances from Sophie Molineux and Shreyanka Patil turned the Delhi Capitals around.