Royal Challengers Bangalore, in their left-handed encounter against Delhi Capitals, emerged triumphant in the Women’s Premier League 2024 in a well-organized manner! With an incredible display of spin bowling that restricted Delhi Capitals to just 113, RCB ensured they didn’t stray from their path in the chase and cruised to an 8-wicket victory!!
Alert and skilled
The pursuit of a meager total attracted some stress but RCB, led by their captain Smriti Mandhana at the apex, ensured they didn’t buckle under pressure. Mandhana, coupled with a fierce Sophie Devine, initiated a 49-run opening partnership even as DC fought hard to make a contest out of it. Shikha Pandey showcased her expertise by only conceding 11 runs in her four overs and managed to get Devine out LBW. Nonetheless, Mandhana found another great companion in Ellyse Perry, who remained unbeaten with a 37-ball 35!
RCB hold on to their nerves
The chase encountered a few hiccups however, when Mandhana departed with 32 runs required off 36 balls, DC sniffed an opportunity. They successfully stretched the game to the final over where five runs were needed. But after singles off the first couple of deliveries, Richa Ghosh smacked a ball over cover for a boundary to wrap up RCB’s trophy drought!
From 64/0 to 113 all out
Delhi Capitals faced a dramatic collapse after a fiery start. The tide turned in a thrilling three-wicket over from Sophie Molineux. Initially, she got the explosive Shafali Varma caught at deepmidwicket before knocking down the stumps of Jemimah Rodrgues and Alice Capsey off consecutive balls. The eighth over of the innings marked a crucial shift as Delhi Capitals drifted away and faltered against RCB’s spinning prowess!!!
Spin to win, again
In the same fashion that they managed to stifle Mumbai Indians in the eliminator, RCB’s spin attack excelled on the final day. Despite Molineux’s three-wicket over, DC’s fate rested on their captain Meg Lanning. Shreyanka Patil, however, applied pressure and simplified things by aiming at the stumps! Lanning missed one attempting to work it on the onside and was trapped LBW while Asha Shobana accounted for both Marizanne Kapp and Jess Jonassen trying to go for big shots. Patil then dismantled the lower order to end with impressive figures of 4-12. The spin choke was perfected with a collective lesson in defensive spin bowling on a pitch that wasn’t as treacherous as Shafali had indicated earlier!
The early onslaught
Delhi’s final score was a huge contrast from what was expected after they opted to bat first. The dynamic duo of the WPL – Lanning and Shafali – provided DC with another explosive start, with the latter going all out. Renuka Singh was hammered for 28 runs in her initial two overs, and even Perry wasn’t spared by an aggressive Shafali who smashed her straight for a six! In total, Shafali smashed three sixes and two fours to notch up 44 runs in a 64-run opening partnership. However, the promise swiftly faded away, leaving DC shocked by the end of the innings, while RCB rode the wave of momentum to seize their inaugural WPL title!!!!
Brief Scores
Delhi Capitals managed 113 in 18.3 overs (Shafali Varma 44; Shreyanka Patil 4-12, Sophie Molineux 3-20) and were defeated by Royal Challengers Bangalore, who scored 115/2 in 19.3 overs (Sophie Devine 32,Ellyse Perry 35*; Shikha Pandey 1-11) by 8 wickets.
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