Delhi Capitals. (Photo Source: Pankaj Nangia/Getty Images)

The Women’s Premier League 2023 is nearing the final stages of the tournament, with the Gujarat Giants taking on the Delhi Capitals at the Brabourne Stadium today in Mumbai. This game will be a crucial one for the Gujarat Giants, considering they are last in the points table with just one win, as their fate will be decided later in the evening.

While Delhi Capitals are in a comfortable position in the points table, winning four of the five matches that they have played, they will be looking to seal their play-off berth today. Former Indian cricketer Aakash Chopra praised the Delhi Capitals team and also backed Shafali Verma, despite her being inconsistent in the WPL 2023.

“Delhi are doing well and it is necessary to know why they are doing so. Shafali Verma – blow hot, blow cold – but they are okay with it. You will not feel from Meg Lanning’s face that why Shafali is playing like that. She understands that Shafali will step aside and play one day and play solidly another day,” Chopra was quoted as saying during the AakashVani show on JioCinema.

Chopra also lauded Meg Lanning as a shrewd captain and stated that she shows a lot of calmness on the field, which reflects the success of the team.

“I feel Meg Lanning’s captaincy is absolutely canny. She understands the pulse of the game extremely well. That is why you will see how she rotates the bowlers, never looks flustered. She has an absolutely calm demeanor as someone who actually understands and controls the game,” Chopra added.

Aakash Chopra compliments the Delhi Capitals team as an all-rounded side

Chopra believes that each and every player in the middle order has been given certain roles to play as he praised them individually.

“Alice Capsey’s role is defined, that she will come and hit. Marizanne Kapp will play cautiously. Jemimah Rodrigues can accelerate and is also the one who won’t allow a collapse to happen. There is a slight problem in the batting after that, where Jess Jonassen has to come,” Chopra added.

The former Indian cricketer also talked about the variety in the Delhi Capitals bowling and mainly cited Shikha Pandey, who is in the purple cap race.

“In bowling, Shikha Pandey started the tournament cold but after that, she has picked up and how. She is in the Purple Cap race and interestingly enough, she is the bowler who has induced the most false shots in this entire tournament. Jess Jonassen bowls well. They get Radha Yadav to bowl with the new ball. They are a very good team,” he concluded.

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