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Heading into the opening match of the Women’s Premier League’s second season, a last-ball, high-scoring thriller would probably have been at the top of the wish list of organizers and fans alike. At the M Chinnaswamy Stadium on Friday, that’s exactly how things unfolded as defending champions Mumbai Indians beat Delhi Capitals in what was a repeat of last year’s final.
Delhi Capitals were in a promising position after being asked to bat first when Alice Capsey (75 off 53) played the knock of the match to take them to 171/5. Mumbai Indians then put together an excellent chase as Yastika Bhatia and captain Harmanpreet Kaur scored half-centuries.
However, with five needed off the last ball, Sajeevan Sajana, on debut, sent the ball over the rope to help MI complete the third most successful chase in the short history of the WPL.
Sajeevan Sajana’s last six balls that lit up WPL and gave MI a winning start against DC
It was a glamorous start to the evening as Shah Rukh Khan led a group of Bollywood actors in a round of dance performances. The captains of the five teams – Harmanpreet Kaur (MI), Meg Lanning (DC), Alyssa Healy (UPW), Smriti Mandhana (RCB) and Beth Mooney (GG) – along with the BCCI top brass, led by president Roger Binny and Secretary Jay Shah also came on stage to take pictures.
But once cricket took center stage, both teams put on a great show in front of a sizeable crowd.
South African pacer Shabnim Ismail, who was MI’s most expensive player at the auction $1.2 crore, he wasted no time in showing his class and experience. Shafali Verma was cleaned up early and DC found themselves under pressure at 6/1 after three overs.
From there, however, Capsey launched a counterattack chasing every player in the MI attack. The 19-year-old, who beat Australian Jess Jonassen for a place in the playing XI, added a 64-run partnership with captain Meg Lanning and a 74-run stand with Jemimah Rodrigues.
What stood out about Capsey’s shot was the way he used his feet. The right-hander continued to lift the ball over the frame and hit nine fours and three sixes in his stroke. Tidy spells from Shabnim (1/24) and Saika Ishaque (0/17) proved crucial for MI eventually.
“I loved being back, it’s an amazing competition to be a part of and I’m delighted to contribute,” Capsey said. “I feel really fresh and in a good place to go out and execute. I just wanted to put pressure on the players in any way possible. “I thought the partnership between Meg and I was really crucial, she is very good at keeping things calm and clear.”
Things went from bad to worse for MI when they lost West Indies captain Hayley Matthews, who won the Most Valuable Player award last season, in the second ball of the chase. Marizanne Kapp bowled a maiden wicket first and Shikha Pandey conceded just six runs in the second over.
But like Capsey before her, Yastika Bhatia showed courage to go on the offensive. The wicketkeeper-batsman played some classy knocks to release the pressure but MI were dealt a blow again when Natalie Sciver-Brunt, who had starred in last year’s final, was sent packing by Arundhati Reddy.
Harmanpreet joined Yastika at the crease and the duo added 56 runs for the third wicket before Arundhati made another breakthrough. Amelia Kerr chipped in with an 18-ball 24, but for MI to get over the line, they needed her captain to stay until the end.
Harmanpreet hit Annabel Sutherland for six off the last ball of the penultimate over to leave MI with 12 runs to go from the last over. Lanning put his faith in Capsey to get the job done and the spinner put DC in pole position by dismissing Harmanpreet. But Sajana remained unperturbed and gave the game an unforgettable ending by hitting a six.