South African wicketkeeper-batter Lizelle Lee was at her destructive best for the second game in a row as Jemimah Rodrigues-led Delhi Capitals defeated Meg Lanning’s UP Warriorz by seven wickets in Navi Mumbai on Wednesday (January 14) to secure their first win of the 2026 Women’s Premier League (WPL).
An inexplicable batting collapse in the death overs limited UP Warriorz to a below-par 154/8 in 20 overs after they were invited to bat first at DY Patil Stadium by Jemimah.
The Meg Lanning side lost as many as six wickets in the last five overs and managed just 24 runs.
Lee, who smashed 86 in the previous game, did the bulk of the work in the run chase for Delhi Capitals with 67 off 44 balls. Her knock included eight fours and three cracking sixes.
Lee, who last played for South Africa in 2022, is making a strong case for a national comeback with her performances in WPL.
The experienced Laura Wolvaardt (25 not out off 24) got Delhi Capitals over the line off the final ball of the match.
Captain Jemimah Rodrigues (21 off 12) was dismissed in the penultimate over, and the disappointment of not staying till the end was visible on her face.
The match somehow stretched to the last ball after a cruising Delhi Capitals could not get the job done earlier. Sophie Ecclestone bowled a solid 20th over, but Delhi Capitals managed to save the blushes as Wolvaardt hit the winning four.
It was the first win for the Rodrigues-led unit in three attempts, while UP Warriorz are yet to taste success this season.
Besides Lee’s explosive effort, Shafali Verma made 36 off 32 balls at the top of the order before falling to a reverse sweep.
Earlier, the debatable move to retire out Harleen Deol on 47 did not work as the Capitals limited Warriorz to a modest total.
Warriorz’ troubles at the top of the order persisted, with Kiran Navgire falling without adding to the scoreboard.
Captain Lanning (54 off 38) top-scored for Warriorz, while number three Phoebe Litchfield (27 off 20) was stumped off Sneh Rana’s first ball after the powerplay.
Lanning and Harleen added 85 runs for the third wicket to stabilise the innings, but the final flourish in the death overs never came.
In search of the big hits, the management decided to retire out Harleen before the start of the 17th over.
Chloe’s stay lasted just three balls.
On Tuesday night, Ayushi Soni of Gujarat Giants had become the first batter to be retired out in the brief history of WPL.
Shafali struck twice in the 20th over, while the pick of the bowlers for Capitals was Marizanne Kapp (2/24 in four overs).
(With inputs from PTI)
