Navi Mumbai, Jan 14 (IANS) Lizelle Lee’s commanding strokeplay, backed by Shafali Verma’s all-round impact, laid the foundation for Delhi Capitals’ first win under captain Jemimah Rodrigues, as they survived another last-over scare to beat UP Warriorz by seven wickets in the seventh match of the Women's Premier League (WPL) 2026 at the Dr DY Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai and open their account on the points table.

Laura Wolvaardt's nerve-wracking finish proved ultimately calming, as she capped off the dramatic final ball of the chase with victory for Delhi.

Delhi’s previous win came as a result of a disciplined bowling display this evening. Shafali Verma (2-11), Marizanne Kapp (2-14), and Shree Charani (1-29) performed exceptionally well in limiting UP Warriorz to just 154 for 8 runs.

Meg Lanning, captain of Warriorz, had lost the toss, led her team best with 54 runs, while Harleen Deol scored 47 runs off 36 balls. Notably, UP Warriorz’ head coach Abhishek Nayar made a mistake by retiring Deol after the 17th over of the game. That decision ultimately backfired spectacularly, as UP leapt into a massive collapse after that point and did not have strong enough momentum to generate enough runs to be competitive.

The Delhi Capitals came out firing in their chase of 155 runs. Both Lee and Verma wasted no time dismantling UP's new-ball bowlers and adding 94 runs in just over 11 overs before UP was left reeling. Verma scored a fast 36 off 32 balls, while hitting six fours, before Asha Shobana took her wicket in the 12th over after a fantastic catch by Deepti Sharma. Lee continued dominating the game, earning her half-century in just over 31 balls, but fell for an astonishing 67 off 44 balls after miscuing a delivery from Deepti Sharma to Kiran Navigire in the 15th over.

Laura Wolvaardt took charge at No. 3, leading the chase with calmness. Jemimah Rodrigues added a quick 21 off 14 balls. With seven runs required from eight balls, Rodrigues tried to take on Deepti in the 19th over but ended up hitting a simple catch to Harleen Deol in the deep, pushing the game into another tense finish.

Sophie Ecclestone had the final over to defend with six runs on the board. It started with a dot ball, followed by a full toss that Kapp sent to the boundary. Two dot balls—a yorker and a low full toss—kept UP in the game, but a failed LBW review resulted in a leg bye that levelled the scores on the second-to-last delivery.

With one run needed off the last ball and the field in tight, Wolvaardt remained composed and hit a drive through the covers for four. She finished unbeaten with 25 off 24 balls. The Capitals finally bounced back after another last-over scare, securing a confident seven-wicket win.

Brief scores:

UP Warriorz 154/8 in 20 overs (Meg Lanning 54, Harleen Deol 47; Shafali Verma 2/16, Marizanne Kapp 2-24) lost to Delhi Capitals 158/3 in 20 overs (Lizelle Lee 67, Shafali Verma 36; Deepti Sharma 2-26, Asha Sobhana 1-20) by seven wickets.

--IANS

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