New Delhi, March 18
After suffering an 8-wicket loss in the Women's Premier League (WPL) 2024 final match against Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB), Delhi Capitals' head coach Jonathan Batty said that his side fought "magnificently".
While speaking after the end of the match, Batty said that the Delhi Capitals players were magnificent while bowling and fielding.
"Our team fought magnificently in the second half of the game. I am so proud of the way the team went about its business during its bowling innings. We bowled and fielded magnificently and a lot of that was courtesy of Meg Lanning's leadership. It was amazing to see our team take the game to the last over," Batty said.
He added that the Indian players in the Delhi Capitals have "improved" in the second season of the WPL.
"Our Indian players have all improved this season. They've worked very hard in the last 12 months through our various training camps. Titas Sadhu stepped up in a couple of games and she's going to be a great prospect for the future. The quality of the cricket has been fantastic this season," he added.
Recapping the match, DC won the toss and elected to bat first. Openers Shafali Varma (44 in 27 balls, with two fours and three sixes) and skipper Meg Lanning (23 in 23 balls, with three fours) started off really well for the team with a quickfire 64-run opening stand.
However, Shreyanka Patil (4/12), Sophie Molineux (3/20) and Asha Sobhana (2/14) helped RCB bounce back just after the powerplay and removed Delhi batters one-by-one, triggering an unfathomable batting collapse. DC was all out for 113 in 18.3 overs.
In the chase of 114, RCB put on a 49-run opening stand, powered by Sophie Devine (32 in 27 balls, with five fours and a six). However, RCB was tested by Delhi bowlers in middle overs and skipper Smriti Mandhana (31 in 39 balls, with three fours) departed at a crucial juncture to leave RCB at 82/2 in 15 overs. However, Ellyse Perry (35* in 37 balls, with four boundaries) and Richa Ghosh (17* in 14 balls, with two fours) finished the chase with three balls left.
Minnu Mani and Shikha Pandey took a wicket each for DC.