Vadodara: Delhi Capitals clinched back-to-back wins in the Women’s Premier League 2026 with a lethal performance in all departments against Royal Challengers Bengaluru at the BCA Stadium in Kotambi here on Saturday.
Delhi Capitals’ bowlers opted to come out first and adapted to the conditions and bowled out RCB for 109. Nandni Sharma led the attack with figures of 3 for 26, including two wickets in the final over, and retained the Purple Cap with 13 wickets so far in the tournament. Marizanne Kapp (2 for 17), Chinelle Henry (2 for 22) and Minnu Mani (2 for 18) supported the opponents with disciplined spells to keep them at bay.
Chasing 110, Delhi Capitals held on after an early wobble and reached the target in a professional manner. Skipper Jemimah Rodrigues and Laura Wolvaardt shared a 52-run stand to calm the innings, with Wolvaardt finishing unbeaten on 42 and Rodrigues contributing a valuable 24. The Capitals finished the game at 111 for 3 and secured victory with 7 wickets in hand to stay in the playoff hunt.
Delhi Capitals all-rounder Minnu Mani reflected on the bowling effort and execution as a unit and said, “We were very clear about our plans before the game because we knew the wicket here would be slow and low. As a bowling team, we focused on hitting the right lengths and not trying too hard. Everyone stuck to their roles and the way we executed our plans together made a big difference.”
Speaking about the role of spin and the way the team kept things tight, Mani added: “On pitches like this, patience is very important. You can’t expect wickets straight away, but if you keep things tight and force the batters to take risks, chances arise. As spinners, our job was to control the middle overs, increase the pace and make it difficult to score freely and I think we did that really well today.”
Talking about her own performance in the game and recent improvements, Mani said: “In the previous games, my execution wasn’t what I wanted it to be even though the effort was there. I kept working on it in training and trusted what the coaches told me. Today things went better at a crucial moment and I’m really happy that I was able to contribute when the team needed it.”
Highlighting the confidence the team is building through back-to-back results, she said: “Winning back-to-back games definitely gives you confidence, but more importantly, it shows that we are learning as a group. Even when we were under pressure at different stages of the game, we remained calm and trusted our process. That is something we want to continue.”
Delhi Capitals will next face Gujarat Giants in the upcoming Women’s Premier League 2026 match on Tuesday, January 27 and will be looking to build on the momentum from back-to-back wins.
