Bengaluru: Come Saturday, it is finally showtime as the finest women cricketers from across the world and raw talent from India come together for the inaugural five-team Women’s Premier League. Each franchise carefully put together its team at the auction last month and the Royal Challengers Bangalore, led by Smriti Mandhana, are no different. Yet, what catches the eye in RCB is the amalgamation of international talent and untapped domestic potential. From Nagaland to Vidarbha and Punjab to Karnataka, their scouting program has been extensive and reflects in the team composition.
Marshalling the resources is Ben Sawyer, a seasoned coach specialising in women’s cricket. Apart from having coached international teams like Australia and New Zealand, the pace bowling specialist weighs in with his involvement in women’s franchise cricket in Australia and England.
But WPL will be a different ball game for the 44-year-old. Among the primary challenges is to strike a balance between the experience and expertise of the international stars with the lack of both in domestic players.
“It is about using the experience of international players well. For example, Sophie (Devine), Erin (Burns) and others, talk to other players about field placements, speed of the ball etc, after each ball during practice. As coaches, we give them the inputs. But the best thing for the domestic players is to watch how the internationals go about their jobs and learn from it,” Sawyer told TOI.
