WPL 2026 final: Friends turn rivals as Smriti Mandhana's RCB take on Jemimah Rodrigues' DC

It was only a little over two months ago when Jemimah Rodrigues decided to pull out of the Women's Big Bash League in Australia to support her team-mate and friend Smriti Mandhana following a personal setback.

On Thursday, the two India players will face-off against each other -- as captains of their teams -- in the Women's Premier League (WPL) final.

It is no secret that the two have supported each other in times of distress. Jemimah had acknowledged in one of her interviews that just the presence of her senior in the nets calmed her down during India's successful World Cup campaign last year. It was a time of mental distress for the Mumbai-based cricketer, something that she openly talked about in the post-match press conference after a career-defining knock against Australia in the semifinal.

The friends will turn foes for an evening as Royal Challengers Bengaluru take on Delhi Capitals in the title clash in Vadodara.

While Smriti has led RCB into the final for the second time in four years, it is the first time that Jemimah is captaining a franchise.

However, it is not an unfamiliar territory for the 25-year-old. Delhi Capitals have fallen short at the final frontier in each of the last three seasons -- including against RCB in 2024.

A long drought

When they take the field on Thursday, DC will look to end an 18-year drought for the franchise (both men and women), similar to what RCB's women's did two years ago.

The Delhi-based franchise has played two high-pressure, must-win matches in four days and Jemimah has remained unbeaten to see her team home in both encounters.

"I think I was doing one thing; I was trying way too hard," Jemimah said in the pre-match press conference with Smriti.

"And the last two games, I just let go. I let go, backed myself, didn't even go and practice because I was practicing so hard, trying to hit every ball perfectly and get everything right. But the more you just let go, it comes and sits on your shoulder. And that's what I did. And I'm happy it's coming. It's coming off well," she added.

A spot in the final was not what many would have expected after DC lost three of their four matches.

Jemimah acknowledges the role of her team-mates in the turnaround.

"This year was a lot more hard work. But I think the way the girls stuck together stood out for me. Especially when things don't go your way, it's very easy for a team to scatter," she said, adding that the team came together after the losses.

The dominant run

In contrast, Smriti's RCB have had some time off the field. Finishing at the top of the table with six wins in eight matches, they advanced directly into the final and had to wait for a week for the big day.

Several of the RCB players were in Goa over the past week, waiting to know who would challenge them.

"Yeah, it was very important. Six days of thinking about cricket, who's going to come, what's going to happen and all of that. It's better that we went off for the first two or three days. It was a good break for all of us," Smriti said ahead of the match.

"Looking forward to the finals because sometimes sitting in the hotel room, not doing much can cause a lot of overthinking. So I'm happy that we had that sort of a break and RCB took us to Goa," she added.

While the two franchises eye to extend dominance in WPL, Smriti and Jemimah will turn fierce rivals briefly before they can go back to supporting each other on and off the field.