8 Match Star Ratings For WWE Money In The Bank 2020
5. Bayley Vs. Tamina - SmackDown Women's Championship Match
This match advanced another storyline - the actually not half-bad at all end of which might finally be in sight, after, goddamn you all, three years of hints, attempts, and retcons - and wasn't offensively awful in its own right.
Given the challenger, the setting, and Bayley's previous in adapting whatever this character is to a match, this was a minor achievement. Is that right, or will the embers of 2015's good will simply never die?
It was a bit weird. Tamina played "nice" early, allowing Bayley respite on the top rope from which she took advantage. Tamina looked like a dipsh*t, and she's hardly Ricky Steamboat in there on the ol' sell, so structurally, this was a piss-poor agenting choice - but when she came back and bounced Bayley around with some power spots, the much-maligned challenger looked pretty damn competent, albeit in a short burst. It was a safe, professional performance in which she gave herself to the story, and for that she should be praised.
It's the strangest thing; there's a division on SmackDown on Friday nights booked by Bruce Prichard with Tamina in it, and it ain't half bad.
Bayley carried Tamina through a relatively engaging attraction. Good for her!
Star Rating: ★★¼