Mumbai Indians Women deservingly won the inaugural Women’s Premier League with a tight win over Delhi Capitals Women. With lots of up-and-down in the game which was fitting a final it was the experience of Natalia Sciver-Brunt and the superiority of the Mumbai Indians bowlers that resulted in a win for them.

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Delhi Capitals won the toss and decided to bat in the big final. However, the opening partnership was broken in a controversial situation as the Capitals claimed that the delivery from Issy Wong which dismissed Shafali Verma could be considered as a No-ball for height.

However, the third umpire gave the benefit of doubt to the bowlers. The captain Meg Lanning held one end up after losing Alice Capsey and Jemimah Rodrigues early and added 38 runs with Marizanne Kapp.

However, they lost 4 wickets in a span of 2 runs including Lanning who was run out for 35. Hayley Matthews was in the middle of a great spell and when she finished her 4 over conceding just 5 runs and picking up 3 wickets, the Capitals were 79/9. It looked like, they would fold below a hundred but a brave, unbeaten 52 runs partnership in the 10th wicket between Shikha Pandey and Radha Yadav took them to a respectable 131/9. Wong and Matthews finished with 3 wickets each and Amelia Kerr had 2 wickets.

The Mumbai Indians chase did not start well as they lost their openers within the first 4 overs. However, the experienced Sciver-Brunt and the captain Harmanpreet Kaur took control of the chase. The scoring rate was low but they could get the boundaries away when required.

A lackluster fielding performance by the Capitals also did not help. Kaur was eventually run out for 37 after adding 72 runs for the third wicket. Despite the wicket and required run rate going up, the Mumbai Indians never panicked as an unbeaten 60 from Sciver-Brunt and an unbeaten 14 from Amelia Kerr took them to a memorable 7-wicket victory in the 20th over.

Score: Mumbai Indians 134/3 beat Delhi Capitals 131/9 by 7 wickets

Player of the Match: Nat Sciver-Brunt (60* off 55)

Player of the Series: Hayley Matthews (271 runs, 16 wickets)

After losing the first-ever WPL final, Meg Lanning, the Delhi Capitals captain said.

We would have loved to win but full credit to MI. They deserve it but full credit to our group’s efforts. We didn’t really set a target, we wanted to put a few more. We didn’t bat at our best but this competition has shown you can keep going till the end, and then you never know. Very good effort from the bowlers. We did well in the first 10 overs, got early wickets but Harmanpreet and Sciver-Brunt took the game away, they batted very well. I have enjoyed playing spin, enjoyed my experience with DC. Everyone responsible at this franchise, made us feel very welcome. A massive thank you to them.

Mumbai Indians captain Harmanpreet Kaur said,

Great experience, we were waiting for so many years. Everyone enjoyed this throughout the dressing room. It feels like a dream, for everyone here. So many people were asking when WPL will come and that day is here, and we are so happy and proud. I think having a long batting line-up, we had to go there and express. Very happy with how everyone performed. I think staying positive is key, we were lucky with full tosses going in our favour. This is a special moment for all of us, I have been waiting a long time and today I know what it feels like to be winning (laughs). Great experience and waiting for next year. (On coaches) We keep talking about being positive, and we executed our plans really well and that’s the reason I’m standing here today.

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