Navi Mumbai: Explosive opener Shafali Verma struck a fine half-century to single-handedly guide Delhi Capitals to 166 all out against table-toppers Royal Challengers Bengaluru in a Women’s Premier League match here Saturday.
Shafali (62 off 41 balls, 5x4s, 4x6s) played her shots in a counterattacking display after DC were down 74 for 6.
Sent in to bat, DC witnessed a torrid start, losing two wickets in the form of Lizelle Lee and Laura Wolvaardt in the opening over.
Skipper Jemimah Rodrigues, Marizanne Kapp, Niki Prasad and Minnu Mani too failed to help DC’s cause, departing cheaply as the Delhi outfit slumped to 74 for 6 in 8.1 overs.
Shafali, however, was at her destructive best, holding one end with her attacking batting. She shared 59 runs with Prasad (12), who played the second fiddle, to keep DC’s innings going.
Shafali played her array of shots to all parts of the ground, and brought up her fifty with a single off left-arm spinner Radha Yadav. From 10 for 4, she has kept DC in the game, counter-attacking, which she knows best.
She then shared a vital 34 runs with Sneh Rana, who scored run-a-ball 22, to keep DC’s innings afloat before the latter was cleaned up by spinner Prerna Rawat in the 14th over.
Shafali got a reprieve when she was dropped by Gautami Naik in the 16th over at long-off off the bowling of Yadav.
Shafali finally departed when she was holed out by Prema Rawat of the bowling of Lauren Bell (3/26).
Towards the end, Lucy Hamilton (36 off 19) played a brilliant knock to give impetus to DC’s innings.
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