Two of the best sides of the 4th edition, the Royal Challengers Bengaluru and the Delhi Capitals, were battling for the Women’s Premier League (WPL) title yet again, a repeat of the grand finale of the 2nd season in 2024. Two of the best friends, sharing the sisterhood camaraderie off the field, Smriti Mandhana, leading the Challengers and Jemimah Rodrigues, leading the Capitals, against each other for the ultimate WPL glory on 5th February 2026 at the Kotambi Stadium, Vadodara.
Jemimah Rodrigues, who had won 8/9 tosses heading into the title clash, ended up on the wrong side of the coin toss this time around as skipper Smriti Mandhana called it correctly and opted to bowl first. Both sides retained the same team that took the field in their previous clash this season.
The Capitals openers, Shafali Verma (20 off 13 balls) and the wicket-keeper batter Lizelle Lee (37 off 30 balls), got them off to a positive start with a 49-run opening partnership. Arundhati Reddy broke the stand by sending Shafali Verma back to the pavilion on the penultimate ball of the powerplay. The Delhi Capitals managed to carry the momentum throughout the innings before Chinelle Henry (35 off 15 balls) unleashed the Caribbean firepower towards the backend of the innings. The Delhi Capitals became the first team to breach the 200-run mark in a WPL final as they posted 203/4 in their quota of 20 overs. Arundhati Reddy (4-0-40-1), Nadine de Klerk (4-0-48-1), and Sayali Satghare (4-0-46-1) were the only wicket-takers with the ball, while Lauren Bell (4-0-19-0) was the stand-out performer for RCB.
RCB, eying a record run-chase, got off to an ideal start with Grace Harris smashing a couple of boundaries in the opening over, bowled by Marizanne Kapp. Chinelle Henry answered skipper Jemimah Rodrigues’ call straight away as she cleaned up Grace Harris on the first ball of her spell to provide the first breakthrough for the Delhi Capitals in the 2nd over of the run chase.
Georgia Voll joined skipper Smriti Mandhana at the crease, and the duo almost took them on the brink of a historic run chase with a mammoth, the highest-ever partnership for any wicket in the history of the WPL. It also marked the first-ever instance of a 100+ run partnership in a WPL final. Minnu Mani revived the Capitals’ hopes by breaking the mammoth stand, sending Georgia Voll back to the pavilion in the 17th over of the run chase. The Jemimah Rodrigues-led side fought back in contention via vital scalps from Nandani Sharma, removing Richa Ghosh and Chinelle Henry, getting the massive scalp of the opposition skipper, Smriti Mandhana, breathing immense belief in the Capitals unit. However, Radha Yadav eventually rubbed salt in the wounds for DC, after being dropped by Minnu Mani on the very next ball after skipper Smriti Mandhana’s departure in the penultimate over of the run chase.
Ironically, Radha Yadav (12 off 5 balls) went on to seal the run chase and RCB’s 2nd WPL title by smashing back-to-back boundaries in the last over to guide her side over the line with 6 wickets in hand and a couple of balls to spare. The Delhi Capitals finished as the runners-up of the tournament for the 4th consecutive season, with another heart-shattering defeat. RCB also became the first team to win the WPL title after topping the table in the league stages of the tournament, securing a direct entry into the final. RCB skipper Smriti Mandhana joins the Mumbai Indians, skipper Harmanpreet Kaur with 2 WPL titles each in four seasons so far.
RCB are the current champions of Indian franchise cricket, led by skipper Rajat Patidar in the IPL (2025), and the Smriti Mandhana-led side in the WPL (2026). The Royal Challengers Bengaluru, as a franchise, completed a hat-trick of titles (WPL 2024, IPL 2025, and WPL 2026) in the Indian franchise circuit. Skipper Smriti Mandhana (87 off 41 balls) was named the Player of the Match in the final. The Delhi Capitals pacer Nandani Sharma (17 wickets) earned the Emerging Player of the Season Award.
Top Performers: Delhi Capitals vs Royal Challengers Bengaluru
Jemimah Rodrigues:
The Delhi Capitals skipper delivered a statement innings, leading from the front, becoming only the 2nd skipper after the Mumbai Indians Harmanpreet Kaur (66 off 44 balls Vs DC in 2025) to score a half-century in the WPL final. Coming in at number 4, with her side in a dominant position at 72/2 in the 8th over after being inserted to bat first by skipper Smriti Mandhana.
She joined Laura Wolvaardt at the crease, and the duo stitched a massive 76-run partnership for the 3rd wicket, which also took them closer to the 150-run mark. The partnership not only continued the momentum into the innings. Sayali Satghare got the big scalp of the Delhi Capitals skipper Jemimah Rodrigues (57 off 37 balls) in the 16th over of the innings. It was her 2nd half-century of the season and the 5th overall in the tournament. Her knock included 8 boundaries, scoring at a strike rate of 154.05.
Chinelle Henry:
The destructive West Indian all-rounder had a decisive all-round impact in the grand finale of the 4th edition of the WPL, against RCB. With the Delhi Capitals eyeing a strong finish to their batting innings, they promoted Chinelle Henry ahead of the likes of Marizanne Kapp after the departure of their skipper Jemimah Rodrigues (57 off 37 balls) in the 16th over of the innings. The move proved to be a masterstroke as she switched her beast mode on, resulting in a blockbuster finish for the Delhi Capitals as they breached the 200-run mark (203/4), becoming the first team to do so in a WPL final. Chinelle Henry’s knock (35 off 15 balls) included four boundaries and a couple of maximums, scoring at a breath-taking strike rate of 233.33.
Besides her exploits with the bat, she struck immediately on the first ball of her spell to remove Grace Harris in the 2nd over of the innings, providing the first breakthrough for her side. She returned to bowl the penultimate over of the contest with 18 runs required in the last couple of overs. She delivered a potential turning point by dismissing the opposition skipper, Smriti Mandhana (87 off 41 balls), in ominous rhythm on the penultimate ball of the 19th over of the game. She could’ve potentially had her 3rd scalp in the form of Radha Yadav, if not for the drop catch by Minnu Mani on the very next delivery, which eventually proved to be the game-defining moment as Radha Yadav eventually sealed the run chase and the title in RCB’s favour. Chinelle Henry returned with match figures (4-0-34-2) in her spell with the ball for her side.
Georgia Voll:
The promising 22-year-old Australian all-rounder from Queensland, Georgia Voll, delivered a match-defining innings, one to be remembered for the ages, for her new franchise, RCB, when it mattered the most. She switched from the UP Warriorz to the RCB in the mega auctions in November 2025. Georgia Voll had a relatively quiet season with the bat heading into the final of the 4th edition, scoring 91 runs in five innings, which included a half-century.
Chasing a taunting record total of 204, RCB were pushed on the backfoot early with the departure of Grace Harris (9 off 7 balls) in the 2nd over of the run chase. Georgia Voll came in at number 3 to join skipper Smriti Mandhana at the crease. The youngster launched a counter-attack on the opposition to keep them on track in terms of the required run rate. The early onslaught eased off some pressure for the RCB skipper.
The duo took the innings deep and eventually both the batters switched to top gear en route to their record-highest-ever partnership worth 165 runs for any wicket in the history of the WPL. The partnership gave them the psychological edge heading towards the business end of the contest. Georgia Voll registered her 2nd half-century (79 off 54 balls) of the season and overall, her fourth in the tournament. Her knock included 14 boundaries at a strike rate of 146.3. She ended the season in style with 170 runs at a strike rate of 126.86 and an average of 34 in six innings, including a couple of half-centuries in 6 matches with the bat for her side this season.
Smriti Mandhana:
The RCB skipper, Smriti Mandhana, led from the front for her side, playing a pivotal role in anchoring the record highest-ever run chase (204 runs) for men or women in a tournament final. After winning the toss and opting to bowl first, they became the first side to concede a 200+ total in the history of the WPL. However, the Challengers’ batting unit continued to believe in their potential. Smriti Mandhana became the 3rd captain after Harmanpreet Kaur (MI) and Jemimah Rodrigues to score a half-century in the WPL final.
They were rocked early with the departure of Grace Harris in the 2nd over of the run chase. However, skipper Smriti Mandhana took charge of the run chase alongside Georgia Voll, stitching a record-shattering 165-run stand for the 2nd wicket. Smriti Mandhana registered her 3rd half-century of the season and her 7th in the tournament en route to their historic exhibition of power-hitting. The departure of Georgia Voll in the 17th over of the innings meant the onus was on their skipper to guide them over the line.
Smriti Mandhana looked all set to not only guide her side over the line in emphatic fashion but also the three-figure mark well within sight. However, she fell (87 off 41 balls), 13 runs short of becoming the 2nd WPL centurion. Luckily for her side, Radha Yadav capitalised on the lifeline provided by the Delhi Capitals all-rounder Minnu Mani under pressure to guide RCB over the line. Smriti Mandhana’s knock included 12 boundaries and 3 maximums, scoring at a strike rate of 212.2.
She claimed the orange cap by ending the season as the leading run-scorer with 377 runs at a strike rate of 153.25 and an average of 53.85 in 9 innings, including three half-centuries in 9 matches with the ball. She also became only the 2nd captain after Harmanpreet Kaur (MI) [in the previous edition] to win the Player of the Match in the WPL final.
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