Qila Kotla witnessed yet another classic last over thriller with our DC girls getting over the line this time around beating Royal Challengers Bangalore by one run. The high-scoring affair saw all kinds of twists with our tigresses ending up on the winning side, which now takes us through to the playoff round. Jemimah Rodrigues was awarded with the player of the match award for her outstanding fifty.
Having won the toss, skipper Meg Lanning decided to bat first and strided along with her opening partner, Shafali Verma. The duo started off steadily but Lanning decided to let loose in the 4th over, when she smashed Renuka Thakur for three fours.
Shafali got into the action smashing Shraddha Pokharkar for a four and a six in the last over of the powerplay. That also saw their stand going past over fifty. However, the youngster was dismissed in the very next over for 23 off 18. Her skipper lost her wicket in the 8th over being caught in front of the stumps for 29 for 26.
Interestingly, Jemimah Rodrigues was sent ahead of Alice Capsey at no. 3, but with the second wicket down, the duo got together in the middle. The England batter was quick to pounce on some poor balls and got three boundaries in her first ten deliveries. Jemimah, on the other hand, struck a boundary off a free hit in the 11th over which got her going.
Boundaries started coming thick and fast and Jemimah exploded with shots all over the ground when she smashed Sophie Molineux for three boundaries in the 13th over. Wareham’s next over once again saw a brace of fours and a six by Jemimah, who was playing spin like a gem. Following up from her smashing knock of 69* against Mumbai, she got her second fifty of the season, this one off just 26 balls.
Capsey, who was watching Jemimah do her business at the other end, then decided to take on the action herself. Her consecutive boundaries off Asha Shobana in the 17th over saw DC get past 150, setting themselves for a perfect finish. Jemimah was unfortunately dismissed in the next over for a well played 58 runs off 36 balls. Her stand with Capsey was worth 97 runs off just 63 balls.
The 18th over went for 18 runs with Capsey hitting Molineux for a couple of fours and Marizanne Kapp smashing a huge six over deep square leg. Capsey was eventually dismissed for 48 off 32 balls, by Shreyanka Patil who got another wicket in the last over to finish with 4/26. DC’s innings ended on 181/5 with Kapp staying unbeaten on 12 off six balls.
Moving to the second innings, Capsey was introduced in the second over, a plan which worked. After being smashed for a boundary by Smriti Mandhana, the off-spinner got one to slide back and get the southpaw trapped in front of the stumps. Elysse Perry walked in next to join Molineux, who was surprisingly sent out to open the innings.
The duo kept things ticking on but Perry was the main aggressor finding gaps from time to time to make sure the required rate never goes up and beyond their reach. She moved close to her fifty with Molineux getting into her act with a few boundaries as the innings moved to the halfway stage. The score was 81/1 after the first ten overs.
The 11th over saw a bit of drama with Perry first getting dropped in the deep off the bowling of Radha. However, the Aussie was dismissed for 49 off 32 balls in the same over by some good outfield work by Shikha Pandey and Taniyaa Bhatia. Molineux followed her to the pavilion in the next over being dismissed by Arundhati Reddy for 33.
Sophie Devine who was in the middle next took a liking to Radha, smashing her for a couple of sixes and a four in the 15th over which put the game in balance. Devine along with Richa Ghosh kept moving towards the target and kept the momentum of their side for a couple of more overs. With 40 runs needed off the last three overs, Kapp came back into the attack to get the wicket of Devine for 26 off 16.
However, a couple sneaky boundaries by Richa and Georgia Wareham made sure the game was not all lost for RCB. When Wareham got out for 12 off six to Shikha Pandey, their side needed 17 off the last over. Jess Jonassen was smashed for a six by Richa off the first ball of the 20th over.
However, the experienced left-arm spinner kept her cool and delivered a couple of good follow-up balls, one of which saw a run out. With 10 needed off the last three, Richa managed a couple and then a six put the pressure back on.
Off the last ball, Richa slashed the ball over backward point but it was fielded and sent back before Richa could make the crease at the other end. She was dismissed for 51 off 29 with DC clinching the thriller by just a run.
Our next challenge will be against the Gujarat Giants on Wednesday, March 13 which will also be our last league match. A win might help us directly qualify for the final, giving us just that extra bit to fight for.
