Bengaluru: Delhi Capitals continued their dominant run in the Women’s Premier League (WPL) 2025, crushing Mumbai Indians by nine wickets at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium. Led by a masterclass from Meg Lanning (60 off 49) and a disciplined bowling performance, DC successfully chased down 124 with 35 balls to spare.
After winning the toss and opting to bat first, the Mumbai Indians struggled to gain momentum against a disciplined Delhi Capitals bowling attack. Despite a steady start from Yastika Bhatia and Hayley Matthews, MI’s innings never truly flourished. Jess Jonassen (3-25) and Minnu Mani (3-17) led the charge with the ball, ensuring Mumbai remained on the back foot throughout their innings.
Mumbai started brightly, with Yastika Bhatia flicking Marizanne Kapp for a boundary in the opening over and Matthews driving fluently through the off-side. However, Shikha Pandey struck in the sixth over, inducing an edge off Bhatia (11 off 10) that was safely pouched by Sarah Bryce behind the stumps.
At 35/1, after the power-play, the onus fell on Harmanpreet Kaur and Nat Sciver-Brunt to stabilise the innings. However, Annabel Sutherland’s tight bowling kept the scoring rate in check, leading to the crucial dismissal of Hayley Matthews (22 off 25), who mistimed a shot to Shafali Verma at mid-off.
Titas Sadhu and Jonassen then turned the game in DC’s favour. Sadhu almost dismissed Harmanpreet early, but an outside edge raced away for four. The Mumbai captain attempted to accelerate, hitting Jonassen for a six, but the left-arm spinner had the last laugh, trapping her plumb LBW for 22 off 16.
With MI struggling at 93/4 in the 15th over, their middle-order faltered under pressure. Nat Sciver-Brunt (18 off 22) offered a simple return catch to Jonassen, who struck again soon after to remove Kamalini, further deepening MI’s troubles. Minnu Mani’s double strike, dismissing Sajana (5) and Amelia Kerr (17), ensured that Mumbai couldn’t recover. A few late boundaries from Amanjot Kaur (12 off 9) helped MI inch past 120, but they finished at an underwhelming 123/9 in 20 overs.
With a modest target to chase, Delhi Capitals were off to a flying start as their skipper, Meg Lanning, and Shafali Verma took Mumbai’s bowlers apart in the PowerPlay. Shabnim Ismail started aggressively, almost trapping Lanning LBW in the opening over, but a review showed impact outside off.
Lanning responded in style, driving Ismail for consecutive boundaries through point and gully, while Shafali Verma quickly got into her groove, dispatching Nat Sciver-Brunt for a six over square leg before slamming two crisp boundaries.
Despite Ismail tightening her line in her second over, Lanning found gaps with precision, punching an on-drive and cutting elegantly to keep the scoreboard ticking. By the end of the PowerPlay, DC had stormed to 57/0, well ahead of the required rate.
Mumbai’s spinners couldn’t contain the assault either. Hayley Matthews and Amelia Kerr tried to break the partnership, but Lanning continued her dominance, sweeping Matthews for a fine leg boundary and punching another through point. At the other end, Shafali launched Kerr for a monstrous six over cover before clubbing another down the ground.
Mumbai’s breakthrough came in the 10th over when Amanjot Kaur dismissed Shafali Verma (43 off 28, 4×4, 3×6, SR: 153.57), caught by Kerr at deep midwicket. However, Jemimah Rodrigues (15 off 10) walked in and wasted no time, slamming a four off her second ball.
Lanning, unfazed by the wicket, raced to her fifty off just 40 balls, her second of the season and a record-breaking eighth in WPL history, surpassing Ellyse Perry’s tally of seven. She punished Jinti Moni Kalita for consecutive boundaries, cutting and sweeping effortlessly, as Sourav Ganguly stood in the stands to applaud her brilliance. With only a handful of runs left, DC comfortably knocked off the remaining target. Lanning guided the ball through midwicket for two runs, sealing the win with 35 balls to spare as her unbeaten 60 off 43 guided DC to the top of the WPL table.
Brief scores:
Mumbai Indians 123/9 in 20 overs (Harmanpreet Kaur 22, Hayley Matthews 22; Minnu Mani 3-17, Jess Jonassen 3-25) lost to Delhi Capitals 124/1 in 14.3 overs (Meg Lanning 60 not out, Shafali Verma 43; Amanjot Kaur 1-12) by nine wickets
(IANS)
