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If game one of the 2025 edition of the Women’s Premier League (WPL) was about a record run-chase, game two produced an absolute humdinger. 202 was chased down with nine balls to spare on the first day but 164 almost proved to be enough for Mumbai Indians (MI) as Delhi Capitals (DC) hunted down the target on the final ball with just two wickets in hand.
MI were dominating at one stage with the bat before DC bounced back in style at the death with the ball. Shafali Verma almost single-handedly killed the game in the powerplay before continuous wickets brought the inaugural WPL champions back in the game. There was drama all around as it eventually came down to a couple of controversial runout decisions by the third umpire.
After a run-fest in the first game, it seemed like a big score was necessary while batting first. One of the reasons was the dew taking full effect in the second innings.
DC won the toss and opted to field first. They had the perfect start as Shikha Pandey got rid of the dangerous Hayley Matthews in the very first over. Yastika Bhatia and Nat Sciver-Brunt upped the scoring rate in the next few overs as MI reached 32/1 in four overs.
Pandey knocked over Bhatia in the 5th over. The experienced pacer bowled a superb first spell, conceding just eight runs in three overs and returned with two wickets. After getting 41/2 in the powerplay, MI upped the ante with skipper Harmanpreet Kaur sharing a solid 72-run stand with Sciver-Brunt. The MI captain was the aggressor in the partnership as she took heavy toll on anything loose and 65 runs came off 4.4 overs post the powerplay.
Just when it looked like MI were on course for a big score, Kaur fell, holing out to deep point. Annabel Sutherland got the much-needed breakthrough for DC. That wicket triggered a collapse. While Sciver-Brunt kept batting on from one end, MI kept losing wickets at the other end.
From 105/2 in the 11th over, MI were bowled out for 164 with five balls remaining in the innings. None of the lower seven batters even got into double figures. The score did look just below par, considering dew would come into play.
Shafali Verma gives DC a blistering start before Niki Prasad’s 35 takes them home after a collapse
Chasing just over eight runs an over, DC got off to a flying start. Shafali Verma smashed left-arm spinner Saika Ishaque for a six and four fours in the second over to set the tone. She again got stuck into Matthews, hitting the West Indies all-rounder for a couple of fours and a six before the latter had the last laugh.
The DC opener was caught at mid-wicket in the final over of the powerplay as Matthews provided MI with the breakthrough. Verma made 43 off just 18 balls to give DC the perfect start. Shabnim Ismail knocked over Meg Lanning just after the powerplay. It was the South African speedster’s fourth consecutive over. Wickets continued to tumble as Jemimah Rodrigues and Sutherland didn’t really make a significant impact with the bat.
From 60/0, DC slumped to 76/4 in the space of three overs. India’s Under-19 World Cup-winning captain Niki Prasad joined forces with Alice Capsey to stablize the chase once again. The duo added 33 runs for the 5th wicket. The partnership lasted six overs but it arrested the slide.
It was Sarah Bruce’s entrance that shifted the momentum back in DC’s favour. The Scotland wicket-keeper batter who was making her WPL debut walked in and struck a brisk 21 off 10 balls, hitting two fours and a six. At the other end, Prasad kept rotating the strike and found the odd boundary. The 31-run stand for the 6th wicket brought the equation down to 25 off 16 balls before Bryce was dismissed.
Shikha Pandey was runout in the following over and 18 runs were required off nine balls at that stage. Radha Yadav got a reprieve as the third umpire ruled a runout decision in her favour. The left-arm spinner seemed to have had a bat in the air when the stumps were broken but the third umpire felt it was grounded when both bails were dislodged.
Yadav smashed a crucial six off the final ball of the 19th over to reduce the equation to 10 off six. Prasad started the final over with a boundary before taking a couple and bringing it down to 4 off 4. There were two singles before the 19-year-old lofted one straight to deep mid-wicket.
With two required off the last ball, Arundhati Reddy got it to clear the infield and scampered back for the second. Harmanpreet Kaur flung the ball in and Bhatia whipped the bails off. Reddy dived full stretch and her bat seemed to be on the line when the bails lit up. However, the third umpire once again ruled it in favour of DC as she felt there was some part behind the crease when both bails came off.
Hence, it was a controversial end to a thrilling contest. It was DC who started off with a nail-biting two-wicket win. MI will rue their collapse with the bat and will consider themselves unlucky with the runout decisions.
BRIEF SCORES: Mumbai Indians 164 all out (Nat Sciver-Brunt 80*, Harmanpreet Kaur 42, Annabel Sutherland 3/34, Shikha Pandey 2/14) lost to Delhi Capitals 165/8 (Shafali Verma 43, Niki Prasad 35, Sarah Bryce 21, Amelia Kerr 2/21, Hayley Matthews 2/32) by two wickets.
