RCB ride the ebbs and flows in the final to clinch second WPL title

Radha Yadav's shot over extra cover will be etched in Royal Challengers Bengaluru's fabled folklore as the franchise's women's team lifted their second title at Vadodara on Thursday.

Chasing a target in a final is added pressure, and to knock down a total that has never been chased before in the history of the league is a different ball-game. On the other end of the spectrum were Delhi Capitals, who slumped to their fourth successive loss in a WPL final.

Needing 204 runs to clinch a third cup (men and women included) in three years, Chinell Henry, whose late blows with the bat had pulled DC's score over 200, continued the momentum with a wicket of her first ball as RCB got off to a poor start, losing Grace Harris at the start of the second over.

However, it was her fellow Australian, Georgia Voll, who took counter-attacked in the powerplay, taking on the experienced Marizzan Kapp, even as skipper Smriti Mandhana was a spectator for the first five overs. The 22-year-old got going with a couple of brave scoops over the keeper's head.

The momentum truly shifted when the southpaw joined the party, smashing a four and following it with the first six of the innings to end the powerplay.

It was all RCB from then on as the duo of Voll and Mandhana were in cruise control, finding gaps at ease and clearing the ropes at will. The run rate never went out of limits as at least a boundary was scored in each of the 20 overs.

A record second-wicket partnership of 165 runs came in just 95 balls. It was not before Voll had eased her way to 79 runs that she holed out to long on as Minnu Mani kept the Capitals hopes alive. The measured innings under pressude included 14 fours, and surprisingly no sixes.

Then came the phase of tension.

In an attempt to finish with a flurry, Richa Ghosh did not last long, while Mandhana's stunning innings of 87 runs off just 41 balls came to an end when was bowled around her legs by Henry. Her ruthless innings came with 12 fours and three big hits over the rope.

RCB still needed 13 runs in eight balls with two new batters, albeit in Radha Yadav and Nadine de Klerk. The pair had previously bailed RCB out of tricky situations and it came yet again as Radha held her nerve to collect the 10 runs that were needed in the last over with two balls to spare.

While it was Ecstasy for RCB, it was despair for the Jemimah Rodrigues-led DC . The captain herself played a central part in her team's mammoth total, scoring her way to 57 runs with the help of eight fours.

After RCB had kept things quiet for three overs, it was Lizelle Lee who decided to up the ante and she did with powerful blows to the fence. Her three fours and as many sixes gave a platform for the middle order to build upon.

Laura Wolvaardt upped the scoring rate with a quick-fire 44 off 26 balls and was only runout on the last ball of the innings. Henry's meaty blows meant she had raced her way to an unbeaten 35 off 15 balls.

At the halfway stage, DC had the best chance to finally break the finals jinx and lift their first title but Mandhana's women had other plans.