A vibrant landscape-oriented featured image for a cricket article. The foreground shows a cricket pitch at night under bright stadium lights, featuring wooden stumps and a red cricket ball on the grass. In the background, a packed stadium gallery is visible under a night sky. A large digital scoreboard prominently displays the match result: "MI Women won by 15 runs" along with the scores for MI-W (199/4) and RCB-W (184/9). Overlaying the image at the bottom is bold, stylized text that reads "WPL 2026: MI WOMEN vs RCB WOMEN" and "SCIVER-BRUNT'S CENTURY SEALS VICTORY," with the website "CRICKETTVONLINE.COM" in the top left corner

MI Women vs RCB Women Match Analysis: Nat Sciver-Brunt’s Century Powers MI to 15-Run Win | WPL 2026

January 26, 2026

Mumbai Indians Women defeated Royal Challengers Bengaluru Women by 15 runs in the 16th match of the Women’s Premier League (WPL) 2026 at the Kotambi Stadium, Vadodara, on Sunday, January 26. A sensational unbeaten century from Nat Sciver-Brunt and early bowling strikes ensured MI Women continued their strong campaign in the tournament.

MI Women vs RCB Women – Match Summary

Match: MI Women vs RCB Women, 16th Match, WPL 2026
Venue: Kotambi Stadium, Vadodara
Date: January 26, 2026
Result: MI Women won by 15 runs
MI Women: 199/4 (20 overs)
RCB Women: 184/9 (20 overs)
Player of the Match: Nat Sciver-Brunt (MI Women)

Nat Sciver-Brunt’s Masterclass Lifts MI Women to 199/4

After being put in to bat by RCB Women, Mumbai Indians Women posted a formidable 199 for 4, built around a world-class innings from Nat Sciver-Brunt, who remained unbeaten on 100 off 57 balls.

MI had a cautious start, losing Sajeevan Sajana early, but Hayley Matthews provided momentum with a fluent 56 off 39 balls, striking nine boundaries. The turning point of the innings came during the 131-run partnership between Matthews and Sciver-Brunt, which completely dismantled RCB’s bowling attack.

Sciver-Brunt paced her innings to perfection:

16 fours and 1 six
Strike rate of 175.43
Accelerated brilliantly in the last five overs

Late contributions from Harmanpreet Kaur (20 off 12) helped MI score 52 runs in the final five overs, giving them a near-200 total that proved decisive.

RCB Women Bowling Struggles in Middle Overs

RCB Women started well with Lauren Bell, who returned figures of 2/21, but the rest of the attack failed to maintain discipline. Bowlers like Sayali Satghare, Arundhati Reddy, Nadine de Klerk, and Shreyanka Patil conceded runs at over 10 runs per over, allowing MI to dominate the middle and death overs.

The inability to contain Sciver-Brunt during the middle phase ultimately cost RCB the match.

RCB Women Chase Undermined by Powerplay Collapse

Chasing 200, RCB Women suffered a disastrous start, losing five wickets inside the powerplay. Key batters including Smriti Mandhana, Grace Harris, Georgia Voll, and Radha Yadav were dismissed cheaply, leaving RCB reeling at 31/5.

Hayley Matthews was exceptional with the ball, picking up 3 wickets for just 10 runs, while Shabnim Ismail used pace and bounce effectively to remove top-order batters.

Richa Ghosh’s Heroic 90 Keeps RCB Alive

Despite the early collapse, Richa Ghosh produced a sensational counterattacking innings, scoring 90 off 50 balls, including 10 fours and 6 sixes. She found valuable support from Nadine de Klerk (28 off 20) and later from *Shreyanka Patil (12 off 5)**.

RCB scored heavily in the final overs, adding 55 runs for the last wicket, but the required rate proved too steep. Richa Ghosh was dismissed on the final ball of the innings, sealing MI’s 15-run victory.

MI Women Bowlers Set the Foundation

MI Women’s bowling unit laid the platform early:

Hayley Matthews: 3/10
Shabnim Ismail: 2/25
Amelia Kerr: 2/37

Although runs were conceded at the death, MI’s early wickets ensured RCB were always chasing above the required run rate.

Key Turning Points of MI Women vs RCB Women Match

Hayley Matthews’ double-wicket over in the powerplay
Sciver-Brunt’s acceleration after the 10th over
RCB losing five wickets inside the first six overs

What This Result Means for WPL 2026 Points Table

With this win, Mumbai Indians Women earned two crucial points, strengthening their position near the top of the WPL 2026 points table. RCB Women, despite a valiant effort from Richa Ghosh, remain inconsistent and will need to address their top-order vulnerabilities moving forward.

Final Verdict

The MI Women vs RCB Women match showcased everything the WPL stands for — elite international talent, high-scoring cricket, and momentum swings. Nat Sciver-Brunt’s unbeaten century stood out as one of the finest innings of WPL 2026 so far, while MI Women once again proved why they are serious title contenders.