About the best thing that can be said for Natalya in her match with Sasha Banks is that she refused to go down without a fight or to wait for her injured arm to heal before she tried her hand against The Boss for the sake of her own pride and the pride of her family. The decision cost her greatly, but at least she was able to leave Raw secure in the fact that she did not let Banks’ insults stand.
Unfortunately, that’s also probably the worst thing that can be said for the match as well. It was painfully apparent that the clipped-wing The Queen of Harts was facing an uphill battle against the healthy Banks, especially after The Boss repeatedly slammed her arm into the ring post. Natalya certainly made it interesting against the “snake” who insulted her, but her injured arm left her unable to apply the Sharpshooter, and The Boss capitalized, locking in the Bank Statement and using that same arm as a leverage point against Natalya’s throat.
The returning former champion didn’t hesitate to add insult to injury after the match, trapping Natalya in yet another Bank Statement just for kicks. Michael Cole was at a loss for words as he tried to determine why a star as accomplished as Banks would “stoop” to savaging Natalya in such a manner when she had already claimed the victory. The question might just answer itself: Clearly, when it comes to Sasha Banks, the submission was nice, but statement was the point. And as long as people are talking, she wins.