WPL | Disruptive de Klerk four-fer and high-octane Harris 75 ensure RCB finals spot as Warriorz bow out

Gantavya Adukia

ByGantavya Adukia,SportsCafe Editor

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Royal Challengers Bengaluru made light work of UP Warriorz in their final WPL league stage encounter to seal the top-spot and eliminate their rivals from the playoff race. Nadine de Klerk's four-fer restricted UP to 143 before Grace Harris' 37-ball 75 helped chase down the target in just 13.1 overs.

Nadine de Klerk took her WPL season wicket tally to 15 with 4/22 for RCB against UP Warriorz in Vadodara on Thursday

‌Asked to bat first in Vadodara on Thurrsday, UP Warriorz sprung a surprise by pairing Meg Lanning with Deepti Sharma to start the innings. The move seemed to backfire as the duo managed just 12 runs across the first three overs with Lauren Bell in full swing, the English pacer conceding just five in her first two. However, the tables flipped when Smriti Mandhana introduced spin earl in the form of Shreyanka Patil and was immediately taken for a boundry apiece by the two openers, giving Deepti the confidence to then add 14 in Bell's final effort of the powerplay. Lanning replicated the effort with a six and a four off Sayali Satghare to cap off the field restrictions in a strong position of 50/0, making it the most successful opening partnership for the franchise in the ongoing season. The spread of field did little to curb the rhythm as Arundhati Reddy's comeback to the RCB lineup began with four leg byes, before three loose deliveries outside off-stump were all put away by Lanning for boundaries. Mandhana finally opted for her trump card Nadine de Klerk in the ninth over and the South African immediately brought about the crucial breakthrough, holing out Lanning at cover for a 30-ball 41. Two balls later, her cross seam delivery snuck past an attempted pull from Warriorz debutant Amy Jones to pin her plumb, swinging momentum back towards RCB. A lull in scoring followed with just 18 coming off the next three overs, including Grace Harris dispatching Harleen Deol for a run-a-ball 14. Ensuing batter Chloe Tryon did not hang around for long either, emphatically stumped in Harris' next over, and with five overs to go the Warriorz suddenly found themselves reeling at 111/4. A couple of Deepti boundaries off Harris threatened another twist, but Bell removed Shweta Sehrawat to keep the team in check. Nevertheless, Deepti brought up a 40-ball half-century in the 18th over, but the final flourish never arrived as she lifted one straight to short fine leg in the penultimate over to help Patil open her account for the day. Proteas de Klerk capped off the resounding team effort with two more scalps in her final over, ending with 4/22 to take over the Purple Cap and restrict the Warriorz to a subpar 143/8.

In response, Harris announced her intent early with a four first-ball against a Kranti Gaud full-toss, and punished the pacer's erroneous length once again two deliveries later to take nine off the first over. Mandhana joined the party with a first-ball boundary off her own, but it was Harris who stole the show by smashing Gaud for five of them in the third over as RCB raced off the blocks. The Aussie greeted Depti into the attack by cracking the first maximum of the innings straight back over her head, the explosive start eventually culminating in a powerplay score of 63/0. Harris brought up a 28-ball half-century with yet another maximum of Asha Shobhanas first ball, and then added two more boundaries for good measure in another blockbuster over. The return of Deepti into the attack only leaked more runs as a first-ball four from Mandhana was followed by a couple more boundaries straight down the ground from Harris. Mandhana, happy playing second fiddle thus far, got flame herself with three successive boundaries against Tryon to bring up the 100-run opening stand in just the ninth over. Pandey finally earned her team the opening breakthrough by sounding Harris the death rattle but the damage had already been done, her 37-ball 75 leaving the team just 36 more to get with 11 overs remaining. Mandhana at the other end continued her blitz all the same, and Georgia Voll join the roll soon enough after a sluggish start to put the game to bed. The skipper brought up a 26-ball half-century on the penultimate ball of the 13th over to take the scores level but Voll spurned the opportunity to strike the winning runs as she holed out for 16. Fittingly, it was thus Mandhana herself who secured her team's second finals appearance with a boundary off Deepti, and effectively confirmed UP Warriorz' elimination from the playoff race with a game to spare for them.

X factor

Big one

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Finally

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Party time

Table toppers

Into the finals!

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