Royal Challengers Bengaluru, powered by skipper Smriti Mandhana’s blade, sit pretty at the top of the Women’s Premier League (WPL) 2026 points table with 10 points from seven games, five wins and two losses, both of them coming in their previous clashes.
A victory in their final league clash against UP Warriorz on January 29 at Vadodara’s Kotambi Stadium (7:30 PM IST) locks in that top spot and a direct ticket to the final on February 5. But drama looms: RCB drop points, stay at 10, and the winner of Gujarat Giants vs Delhi Capitals showdown (January 27, Kotambi Stadium) catapults one challenger to 10 points with a superior net run rate? That’s the only path to toppling them.
Smriti Mandhana has been RCB’s heartbeat, leading her side’s run charts and ranking fourth overall with 236 runs in seven innings at a strike rate of 132.58 and an average of 39.33, featuring a half-century. The bowling attack hums too: Lauren Bell and Nadine de Klerk share the team’s wicket lead with 11 scalps each, Bell at 14.45 average and 5.67 economy over seven innings, de Klerk matching her impact. Both sit joint third in the tournament’s wicket tally, rubbing shoulders with Gujarat’s Sophie Devine. This balanced firepower has RCB eyeing history.
Mumbai Indians, under Harmanpreet Kaur, lurk in second with six points from seven games, three wins, four losses. One game remains, but their campaign has sputtered lately. However, a win in their final league game could secure them a spot in the playoffs, considering their strong net run rate.
Third-placed Delhi Capitals, skippered by Jemimah Rodrigues, hold six points from six games (three wins, three losses), with one fixture left post the Giants clash. They’ve owned the league stage across all three prior WPL editions under former captain Meg Lanning, earning direct final berths each time, only to finish runners-up.
The clash against Gujarat is do-or-die: a win gets them to 8 points, but RCB’s stumble and NRR edge could still propel them atop. Rodrigues’ steady hand might finally crack that title code.
Ashleigh Gardner’s Gujarat Giants mirror DC in fourth with six points from six (three wins, three losses), one game pending. Sophie Devine’s 11 wickets tie her with RCB’s Bell and de Klerk for third in the tourney. A triumph over the Capitals will get them to 8 points, and a win in their final league game could topple RCB, if they surpass the Smriti Mandhana-led side on the net run-rate. Their inconsistency bites, but home turf at Kotambi adds edge.
RCB’s grip feels ironclad, but tonight’s Giants-Capitals thriller (under lights at Kotambi) could ignite chaos. Mandhana’s squad has exposed some flaws, resulting in a dip in form with defeats in their last couple of games. Rivals need perfection and fortune. As league stages near the conclusion in the 4th edition, one question burns: will RCB’s throne hold, or will an underdog script the upset?
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