WPL 2023 Final: MI become Inaugural Champions by defeating Delhi Capitals by 7 wickets

All-round heroics from Mumbai Indians (MI) helped them outclass Delhi Capitals (DC) in a high-octane final of the inaugural Women’s Premier League (WPL 2023) on Sunday, March 26.

After Matthews, Wong and Kerr shared a total eight wickets between them to put Mumbai in strong position, Nat Sciver-Brunt scored a heroic fifty to power MI to a 7-wicket win over Delhi in first-ever WPL Final.

WPL 2023 Final: DC Fought till the last over but MI Chased down the target

Chasing a paltry of 132 runs, MI reached 134/3 in 19.3 overs, courtesy of an unbeaten half-century by Nat Sciver-Brunt. Sciver-Brunt smacked an unbeaten knock of 60 runs off 55 balls, packed with seven fours. Meanwhile, captain Harmanpreet Kaur played a crucial knock of 37 off 39 balls, with five fours. Radha Yadav and Jess Jonassen bagged a wicket each for Delhi.

Initially, DC reached 131/9 in 20 overs, with Meg Lanning top-scoring with a knock of 35 runs off 29 balls, packed with five fours. But the DC didn’t receive any support and lost her wicket in a freak run out.

With wickets tumbling, tail-enders Shikha Pandey and Radha put in a strong final partnership to remain unbeaten. Shikha smacked 27 runs off 17 balls, including three fours and a six. Meanwhile, Radha hammered 27 off 12 deliveries, including two fours and two sixes.

WPL 2023 Orange Cap holder

After an outstanding performance throughout the tournament, Meg Lanning was crowned the winner of the WPL 2023 Orange Cap. The captain of the Delhi Capitals was the top scorer for her team in the final, contributing 35 runs in the first innings. Throughout the season, Lanning scored a total of 345 runs and finished with an impressive average of 49.29 and a strike rate of 139.11 in nine matches.

Hayley Matthews claim the Purple Cap

Hayley Matthews, who plays for Mumbai Indians, was awarded the Purple Cap for her excellent performance in the WPL 2023 final. Matthews, who is an all-rounder from the Caribbean, triggered the collapse of the Delhi Capitals by taking three wickets for just five runs in her four overs. With this performance, her total wicket tally in the tournament reached 16, which led her to clinch the Purple Cap.

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