UP Warriorz, already out of playoff contention, showcased their best performance at home in Lucknow, setting a new Women’s Premier League record total of 225/5. The innings was highlighted by Georgia Voll, 21, who scored a magnificent 99 not out, and Kiran Navgire, who contributed a rapid 46 off 16 balls. RCB’s bowlers, returning after a week’s break, appeared out of form, bowling inconsistently, which Voll and her teammates exploited fully. RCB needed to surpass their own chasing record to remain in the playoff race, and while they made a valiant effort, they fell short by 12 runs, marking their fifth consecutive loss and concluding their title defense with one game remaining.
Grace Harris aggressively targeted Kim Garth in the powerplay, hitting five boundaries in Garth’s two overs, costing 22 runs. Voll continued the attack, hitting Renuka Thakur for three boundaries and then smashing Charlie Dean for a six and two fours, resulting in a half-century opening partnership in just 4.5 overs and propelling Warriorz to 67/0 after six overs.
Even with a spread field, Harris continued to punish Garth’s shorter deliveries, contributing to a 77-run opening stand at 11 runs per over. A run-out against the flow of play provided RCB a breakthrough when Harris was caught short of her crease attempting a risky single in the eighth over.
However, RCB found little relief as Navgire launched a fierce counter-attack, hitting boundaries against RCB’s experienced bowlers all around the ground. She hit Perry for a six upon her introduction and then followed up with two sixes off Georgia Wareham. Thakur also faced Navgire’s onslaught, conceding boundaries and allowing Navgire to reach 46 off just 15 balls. Navgire was close to the fastest WPL fifty, but was eventually caught out near long-off.
At 148/1 in the 13th over, Chinelle Henry was promoted up the batting order and contributed a quick 19 runs, while Voll continued to dominate. Voll reached Warriorz’s 200 in the 17th over with consecutive boundaries off Wareham.
RCB’s tactics in the middle overs allowed Voll to effectively target the short leg-side boundary. The 18th over was the only over without a boundary, but Sophie Ecclestone added a couple in Garth’s final over. Starting the final over at 91, Voll reached 95 with a reverse sweep off Dean. Despite attempting to repeat the shot, she could only manage a single, and a run-out on the final ball meant she finished on 99 not out, equaling Sophie Devine’s highest individual score in the WPL.
In response, Smriti Mandhana began with a beautiful boundary but was dismissed softly in the third over. This followed S Meghana’s aggressive over against Harris, scoring 22 runs with two sixes and fours. Perry also scored three boundaries off Henry, but Meghana was then caught out, giving Ecclestone a wicket.
Perry and Bist continued the attack, reaching the season’s best powerplay score of 70/2, but UPW consistently took wickets. Anjali Sarvani dismissed Perry with a superb inswinger for 28. Shortly after, wicketkeeper Uma Chetry took a stunning catch to dismiss Bist for 14.
Sarvani then bowled a poor over, allowing Ghosh to settle in. Ghosh hit a six and a four. Kranti Goud bowled a quiet 10th over, in which RCB reached 100, followed by Deepti Sharma’s over where Kanika Ahuja was dismissed under pressure.
Ghosh’s aggressive batting kept RCB in the game, reaching a fifty off 25 balls. However, her dismissal brought an end to RCB’s hopes.
Despite both teams being nearly eliminated, they delivered a record-breaking game on International Women’s Day. Sneh Rana threatened a comeback with a quickfire 26, but was dismissed on the final ball of the penultimate over. RCB needed 15 runs off the final over with one wicket remaining, but could only manage two singles before Thakur was run-out, sending Gujarat Giants to the playoffs.
Brief scores: UP Warriorz 225/5 in 20 overs (Georgia Voll 99*, Kiran Navgire 46, Grace Harris 39; Georgia Wareham 2-43) beat Royal Challengers Bengaluru 213 in 19.3 overs (Richa Ghosh 69, Sneh Rana 26; Sophie Ecclestone 3-25, Deepti Sharma 3-50) by 12 runs
