DC vs RCB Match Prediction: Who will win today's WPL 2023 match?
The Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) are rooted to the bottom of the 2023 Women's Premier League (WPL) points table and remain bereft of ideas.
With no wins from four matches, Smriti Mandhana and Co. have clearly been one of the worst teams in the competition. Their net run rate stands at a terrible -2.648 and it seems like the three teams that will make the playoffs have already been decided.
Nevertheless, RCB are still in with an outside chance of finishing in the top three. They can take their first step towards that goal when they face off against the Delhi Capitals (DC) in Match 11 of WPL 2023 on Monday, March 13. The DY Patil Stadium in Mumbai will host this contest.
Unlike RCB, DC have been one of the standout sides this year. The Capitals have won three of their four matches and are placed second in the points table with a net run rate of +2.338.
Meg Lanning and Co. overcame a thumping defeat against table-toppers Mumbai Indians (MI) to register a whopping 10-wicket win against the Gujarat Giants (GG). With a win against the bottom-feeders, DC could stake a firm claim for a spot in the top three and perhaps even attempt to displace MI from the top.
The last time the two teams met in WPL 2023, DC ran out comfortable winners by 60 runs. Tara Norris was the Player of the Match for her five-fer, while Lanning and Shafali Verma put on a 162-run opening partnership.
Will the Capitals come up with another complete performance? Or will the Royal Challengers dig deep and put their first points on the board?
WPL 2023, DC vs RCB: Can Smriti Mandhana and Co. register the first win of their campaign?
RCB's bowling attack has been absolutely toothless this season. Barring their game against the Giants, who lost seven wickets while batting first, Bangalore have picked up just three scalps in the other three games.
Heather Knight is the side's top wicket-taker with four scalps and Shreyanka Patil (two) is the only other bowler to have taken more than one wicket in WPL 2023. The likes of Renuka Singh Thakur and Ellyse Perry have been thoroughly ineffective with the ball. Additionally, the host of changes RCB made for the previous game didn't work either.
Mandhana and Co. dropped Megan Schutt, their sole overseas specialist bowler, and brought in Komal Zanzad, Erin Burns and Sahana Pawar last time around. However, their woes continued as the UP Warriorz scaled down RCB's total without losing a single wicket.
DC, meanwhile, are in a much better position. Shafali Verma and Meg Lanning are clear Orange Cap contenders, while Marizanne Kapp and Shikha Pandey finally broke through with a combined eight wickets against GG.
The Capitals are so potent that the star of their game against RCB, Tara Norris, has bowled only one over in each of their last two matches. Apart from Kapp, Pandey and Norris, Jess Jonassen and Radha Yadav have made important contributions as well.
DC are clearly the better side and should be able to come away with two points on Monday.
Prediction: DC to win Match 11 of WPL 2023.