Capitals look to confirm playoffs spot, while Giants are still searching for their best XI

Capitals vs Giants – teams with contrasting runs face off

Gujarat Giants have tried shuffling their openers around. They have chopped and changed their overseas players. And now they have returned to their original combination. What hasn’t changed is the brittleness of their batting line-up and poor death bowling.

So there might be changes again. S Meghana’s low run of scores may prompt a relook at the top of the order. Giants did not use Mansi Joshi at all during their loss against Mumbai Indians and they could look to get in an allrounder in Hurley Gala or another spinner in Parunika Sisodia. Top-order batter Ashwini Kumari also is an option given she can chip in with her medium pace.

Delhi Capitals have gone from strength to strength and at the core of it is a stable line-up; their long batting order, an envy of most teams, has come to their rescue twice. A win in this game will take them one step closer to confirming a playoff spot.

Players to watch

Harleen Deol is not just the only Giants player with over 100 runs in the WPL, she is also making the right moves on the field. Her diving catch to dismiss Harmanpreet Kaur will be talked about for some time as will her direct hit to run Humaria Kazi out. Now for Giants to hand her the ball for some legspin.

Likely XIs

Delhi Capitals: 1 Meg Lanning (capt), 2 Shafali Verma, 3 Alice Capsey, 4 Jemimah Rodrigues, 5 Marizanne Kapp. 6 Jess Jonassen, 7 Taniya Bhatia (wk), 8 Radha Yadav, 9 Shikha Pandey, 10 Arundhati Reddy/Minnu Mani, 11 Tara Norris

Gujarat Giants: 1 Sophia Dunkley 2 S Meghana/Ashwani Kumari, 3 Harleen Deol, 4 Ashleigh Gardner, 5 Laura Wolvaardt/Annabel Sutherland, 6 D Hemalatha, 7 Sneh Rana (capt), 8 Sushma Verma, 9 Kim Garth/Georgia Wareham, 10 Tanuja Kanwar, 11 Mansi Joshi/Hurley Gala

Stats and trivia

Quotes

“It’s a different role but one I am quite used to in England. England use me where if there’s a wicket in the powerplay, I’ll go in at No. 3 and counter-attack. If we have a good partnership up top, I slot down at No. 5 or 6. I keep the same mindset when I go out to bat – it’s to put pressure on the bowlers.”
Capitals batter Alice Capsey is happy with her role

“I think we have a lot of depth in bowling. We haven’t yet needed Hemalatha’s bowling and there are more who have not yet been required. Like we didn’t use Mansi Joshi [against Mumbai Indians].”
Giants wicketkeeper Sushma Verma on their bowling