RCB vs DC Match Prediction: Who will win today's WPL 2024 match?
Only one team still have a zero in the losses column in the 2024 Women's Premier League (WPL), and the Delhi Capitals (DC) will look to change that about the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in Match 7 on Thursday, February 29.
With wins over the UP Warriorz (UPW) and the Gujarat Giants (GG), Bangalore have made a good start to their campaign. Their win over the former was a tightly contested affair and looks even better in the aftermath of the Warriorz taking down the Mumbai Indians (MI).
DC, meanwhile, fell to the defending champions in the tournament opener before easing past UPW in a comprehensive display with both bat and ball. A win over RCB would take them above MI in the points table, and a win by a big enough margin could even displace their upcoming opponents at the WPL 2024 summit.
The two teams faced each other twice last season, and the results reflected the respective strengths of their rosters at the time. The Capitals won their first meeting by 60 runs before extending their head-to-head advantage with a six-wicket victory.
But RCB have greatly strengthened their side since then and have made an impressive start to the new campaign. In front of an adoring crowd at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium, Smriti Mandhana and Co. will look to make it three out of three in WPL 2024.
Can RCB continue their unbeaten start to the campaign? Or will DC make things interesting at the top of the table?
WPL 2024, Match 7: DC look to vanquish last unbeaten team in RCB
Much of DC's success hinges on their opening pair of Meg Lanning and Shafali Verma. UPW couldn't separate the partnership in the last game, and that's largely because they didn't have enough pace to trouble the latter, who notched up an aggressive half-century.
Lanning, despite retiring from international cricket recently, has been going strong. And with Alice Capsey already contributing a match-winning effort, Delhi have a lot going for them in the top order against a team that hasn't relied on pace to do the trick so far.
At the other end, Sophie Devine is yet to fire, and if she does, no bowlers in the world are safe from her destructive power. The Kiwi will want to give her skipper Mandhana and No. 3 batter S Meghana some support at the top of the order, as will Richa Ghosh in the middle.
DC's batting lineup hasn't been seriously tested so far in WPL 2024, and depth isn't something they are considerably equipped with. A few early wickets from Renuka Singh Thakur could seriously trouble the visitors, given that Bangalore's spin quartet have enough skill and all-phase pedigree to bowl four overs each.
At the same time, however, their bowlers have stepped up so far. Arundhati Reddy, Shikha Pandey and Marizanne Kapp have all looked good to start the tournament, while Annabel Sutherland is likely to come to the party soon.
Given how they have played so far, RCB might be the favorites to come out on top on Thursday. But an upset could be on the cards, with DC having the necessary firepower to hand the home side their first loss of the new campaign.
Prediction: DC to win Match 7 of WPL 2024.