Advertisement
Sections
WPL final, DC vs MI: Two of the best sides meet in the summit clash
Meg Lanning's Delhi Capitals take on Harmanpreet Kaur's Mumbai Indians in the final of the inaugural Women's Premier League (WPL).

By winning the first five matches on the trot, Mumbai Indians become everyone's favourite to not just reach the final of the inaugural Women's Premier League (WPL) but also for the trophy. But then they hit a roadblock.DC vs MI, WPL final: Live streaming detailsBack-to-back defeats to UP Warriorz and Delhi Capitals took the wind out of their sails. The first team to qualify for WPL 2023 playoffs eventually finished the league phase with six wins and 12 points, the same as Delhi Capitals but a spot behind them in second in the points table on the basis of NRR (Net Run Rate).DC never had a winning streak as crazy as that of MI but showed enough consistency to finish at the top of the league table and qualify directly for the final.Mumbai had to beat third-placed UP Warriorz in the Eliminator to finally make it to the final.And in the summit clash, Mumbai once again face the consistent Delhi for a fight to make history. The winner will be crowned the first-ever WPL champion and none of the teams will be willing to give an inch.For Mumbai, their biggest concern is the form of the skipper Harmanpreet Kaur. After three fifties in the first five games, Harmanpreet's best has been 25 in the last four matches. The biggest run-makers for MI had been its top-order players — Yastik Bhatia, Hayley Matthews, Nat Sciver-Brunt and Harmanpreet. Along with the captain, the other three have also witnessed a dip in form. Leading to defeats against UPW and DC in the league phase.Even in the last league game against Royal Challengers Bangalore, it was the contributions of Amelia Kerr and Pooja Vastrakar from the middle-order that helped bail MI out.The good news is that Yastika and Matthews got useful 20-plus scores in the Eliminator that MI won by 72 runs, while Nat Sciver-Brunt dazzled with her 72 not out off 38 balls. Harmanpreet could only get 14 in the match.To have any chance of winning a trophy, Harmanpreet would need to fire or hope for her top-order batters to find their best form and not leave the job to the middle or lower order players.MI don't have to think much about their bowling though.Pacer Issy Wong took WPL's first hat-trick in the Eliminator against UPW. Also, Saika Ishaque (15 wickets), Matthews (13), Kerr (13) and Wong (12) hold the second, third, fourth and fifth place respectively in the highest wicket-takers list currently in WPL 2023.On the other hand, DC are captained by Meg Lanning, probably the best skipper in women's cricket. Lanning recently led Australia to a record-extending sixth T20 World Cup title and leads the batting chart currently in WPL 2023 with 310 runs in eight matches at a strike rate of 142.Delhi also have a strong Indian core of Jemimah Rodrigues, Shafali Verma, Shikha Pandey and Radha Yadav. Players who can be the deciding factor in the final.Also on their side is South Africa's Marizanne Kapp. One of the best all-rounders going around, Kapp has so far scored 159 runs and has taken nine wickets.All in all, both teams have a bunch of match-winning players, but whichever team has them firing on all cylinders on Sunday will eventually have the trophy in their kitty.The match will be played at the Brabourne Stadium in Mumbai and will start at 7.30 PM IST.Head-to-head: DC and MI have played two matches against each other so far. MI won the first match by eight wickets and lost the second one by nine wickets.Squads:Delhi Capitals: Meg Lanning (c), Jemimah Rodrigues (vc), Shafali Verma, Alice Capsey, Radha Yadav, Shikha Pandey, Marizanne Kapp, Titas Sadhu, Laura Harris, Tara Norris, Jasia Akhtar, Minnu Mani, Taniya Bhatia (wk), Poonam Yadav, Jess Jonassen, Sneha Deepthi, Arundhati Reddy, Aparna Mondal.Mumbai Indians: Harmanpreet Kaur (c), Nat Sciver-Brunt, Amelia Kerr, Pooja Vastrakar, Yastika Bhatia (wk), Heather Graham, Isabelle Wong, Amanjot Kaur, Dhara Gujjar, Saika Ishaque, Hayley Matthews, Chloe Tryon, Humaira Kazi, Komal Zanzad, Priyanka Bala, Sonam Yadav, Neelam Bisht, Jintamani Kalita.Read all the Latest News, Trending News, Cricket News, Bollywood News,India News and Entertainment News here. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
First Published:Mar 26, 2023, 11:15:56 IST
Advertisement
Advertisement

Rohit Sharma finally responds to growing speculation over his India future: 'Let the noise be there'
India ODI opener Rohit Sharma silenced speculation about his future with a record‑breaking performance at Lord’s Cricket Ground. HE became the first Indian cricketer to score an ODI century at the iconic venue.
2 min read
Shubman Gill pins India's loss on death-over lapses after England run riot: 'We gave away lot of runs'
India ODI captain Shubman Gill rued over the team's shortcomings in the third match against England. India suffered a 2-1 defeat to the Three Lions in the one-day series.
1 min read
Rohit shines with historic Lord's ton, but England seal series 2-1
With his back against the wall and an illustrious career on the line, Rohit Sharma silenced his critics the only way he can, smashing one of his most celebrated centuries in recent memory, though it wasn't enough to prevent a 27run defeat in the third ODI against England, as India surrendered the series 12 here Sunday
4 min read
India and England players don black armbands, observe minute's silence at Lord's to honour Sir Garfield Sobers
Players of India and England wore black armbands and held a minute's silence at Lord’s Cricket Ground ahead of the third ODI to honour legendary West Indies all‑rounder Sir Garfield Sobers.
1 min read
India coach shrugs off Rohit Sharma form woes amid speculation on ODI future: 'He brings that calmness'
India bowling coach Morne Morkel shrugged off any form-related concern over former India his captain Rohit Sharma after he failed to put up impactful knocks in past two matches.
2 min read
Advertisement
Advertisement
