RCB hope to finish home leg on a high against rampaging Delhi Capitals
RCB have lost all three games at home this season while DC are entering the contest as table-toppers
RCB hope to finish home leg on a high against rampaging Delhi Capitals
RCB have lost all three games at home this season while DC are entering the contest as table-toppers
Both Smriti Mandhana and Meg Lanning have blown hot and cold in WPL 2025  •  BCCI
Who's playing
Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) vs Delhi Capitals (DC)
M Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bengaluru, 7.30pm IST
M Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bengaluru, 7.30pm IST
What to expect
A big win against Mumbai Indians (MI) was just what DC needed to shake off any tiredness going into the next game. They will be facing a bruised RCB less than 24 hours after their match against MI, but will have a lot to cheer about. Firstly, they are at the top of the table with eight points from six games. Their bowling in the last two games, where they've kept their opponents to sub-130 totals, has been quite excellent. They've also been among the best fielding units this tournament, with the likes of Annabel Sutherland, Minnu Mani and Jemimah Rodrigues saving a number of runs with their acrobatics on the field.
RCB have lost their last three games at their home venue, but the defeat in the game against Gujarat Giants - where they were restricted to 125 for 7 "affected" them the most, captain Smriti Mandhana said after the game. There are several questions for them heading into this clash: is the batting too dependent on Ellyse Perry? Are they missing their spin trio of Asha Sobhana, Sophie Molineux and Shreyanka Patil, who were their key bowlers at the Chinnaswamy last year? Is Mandhana's subpar form affecting them a bit too much? RCB will want to quickly find answers and give the home crowd something to cheer about for one last time this season before moving to the Lucknow leg.
Form guide
Royal Challengers Bengaluru LLL (last three matches, most recent first)
Delhi Capitals WWL
Delhi Capitals WWL
Team news
RCB made one change in the last game, bringing back legspinner Prema Rawat for left-arm spinner Ekta Bisht. Rawat, however, bowled just one over in the game and conceded 19 runs.
Royal Challengers Bengaluru (probable XI): 1 Smriti Mandhana (capt), 2 Danni Wyatt-Hodge, 3 Ellyse Perry, 4 Raghvi Bisht, 5 Richa Ghosh (wk), 6 Kanika Ahuja, 7 Georgia Wareham, 8 Sneh Rana, 9 Kim Garth, 10 Prema Rawat/ Ekta Bisht, 11 Renuka Singh
DC are likely to persist with the winning combination.
Delhi Capitals (probable XI): 1 Meg Lanning (capt), 2 Shafali Verma, 3 Jemimah Rodrigues, 4 Annabel Sutherland, 5 Marizanne Kapp, 6 Sarah Bryce (wk), 7 Jess Jonassen, 8 Niki Prasad, 9 Minnu Mani, 10Titas Sadhu, 11 Shikha Pandey
Players to watch: Minnu Mani and Georgia Wareham
Be it with the ball or as a fielder, Minnu Mani gave it her all in the game against MI. After bowling a quiet 12th over, she dealt Mumbai a double jolt in the 17th, dismissing S Sajana and Amelia Kerr. She came back to remove Sansriti Gupta in the 19th to finish with figures of 3 for 17 from three overs on a sluggish surface. Her flying one-handed stop to her right to save a boundary in the 13th over highlighted why she's one of the best fielders going around in the circuit. She's bowled only 14 overs across five matches and has taken five wickets. DC will want to make use of her bowling more, allowing her to bowl her full quota which she's done only in two games this season.
Georgia Wareham bounced back well after conceding 50 runs in the first match of the season, picking nine wickets in five matches so far. She picked two crucial wickets against Giants, removing Harleen Deol and top-scorer Ashleigh Gardner, although it was a bit too late. She has played at No. 3 for Australia before - even has a half-century playing in the position - and RCB could use her as a floater in the middle order in case of early wickets.
Stats that matter
- This season's top four wicket-takers so far - Jess Jonassen (9 wickets), Renuka Singh (9), Georgia Wareham (9) and Annabel Sutherland (8) - will be part of this match
- Meg Lanning has the most fifty-plus scores in the WPL (eight), going past Ellyse Perry
- Toss has been decisive at the M Chinnaswamy, with chasing teams winning six out of the seven games
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