WPL 2026: Why did Nicola Carey miss RCB vs MI clash?
Nicola Carey played all six matches for Mumbai Indians this season but her name was missing from team sheet for the RCB vs MI clash.
The Women’s Premier League (WPL) 2026 clash between Royal Challengers Bengaluru Women and Mumbai Indians Women promises high stakes as the two sides meet in Vadodara.
RCB enter the contest in strong form, sitting near the top of the table with five wins from six matches and boasting one of the best net run rates this season. Led by Smriti Mandhana, Bengaluru will look to bounce back after their first defeat in their previous outing and book their spot in the finals.
Mumbai Indians, on the other hand, find themselves under pressure. Led by Harmanpreet Kaur, MI are currently languishing in the lower half of the table and come into the match on a three-game losing streak.
With playoff hopes hanging by a thread, they will need a collective performance, particularly from their big guns, to defeat an in-form RCB side.
Why did Nicola Carey miss RCB vs MI clash?
Mumbai Indians have made a massive change ahead of a potential do-or-die battle. In-form Australian all-rounder Nicola Carey is all set to miss her first match of this WPL season.
Captain Kaur confirmed that Carey is injured, which was seen during MI’s previous clash against the Delhi Capitals. After bowling the opening over, the Australian left the field and took no further part in the second-innings.
“Looking at the conditions and how previous matches have gone, we wanted to bowl first. But whatever comes our way, it’s a very important match for us. Playing with a positive approach is the key today, that’s more important. We spent some really good quality time together and had very productive meetings.
Hopefully, whatever we discussed and trained on over the last few days, we’ll execute it out there. Today we have one change – Amelia Kerr is back in the side, and Carey misses out due to injury. It’s an important game, we’re going with our best eleven and hopefully we’ll play positive cricket.”, Mumbai Indians captain Harmanpreet Kaur confirmed at the toss.
Mumbai Indians’ most expensive player, Amelia Kerr, makes her return to the team. The Kiwi was shockingly dropped in the previous match, a decision which backfired and ultimately cost the defending champions big time. Carey’s absence against RCB-W will be felt, and the void must be filled by the likes of Hayley Matthews, who is yet to repay the trust and faith shown in her by the Mumbai Indians management this season.
Having been inserted to bat first by Smriti Mandhana after winning the toss, the onus is on the MI-W batters to set up a match-winning score and apply pressure on the Royal Challengers Bengaluru team.
RCB vs MI: Mumbai Indians playing XI
Mumbai Indians Women (Playing XI): Sajeevan Sajana, Hayley Matthews, Nat Sciver-Brunt, Harmanpreet Kaur(c), Amelia Kerr, Rahila Firdous(w), Amanjot Kaur, Sanskriti Gupta, Vaishnavi Sharma, Shabnim Ismail, Poonam Khemnar
Why did Nicola Carey miss the RCB vs MI match?
Nicola Carey was ruled out due to an injury sustained in Mumbai Indians’ previous match, where she left the field after bowling one over.
Who replaced Nicola Carey in the Mumbai Indians XI?
Amelia Kerr returned to the playing XI in Carey’s absence.
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Aniruddh Seshadri Iyer is a passionate sports journalist at Khel Now, specializing in tennis and Olympic sports. An engineer by training, he found his storytelling passion through iconic Grand Slam and Olympic moments. Known for sharp analysis and insightful coverage, he draws inspiration from Novak Djokovic’s resilience. Outside journalism, he enjoys reading, traveling, and playing the guitar.