Today we bring you the DC Women best playing XI for WPL 2024. Delhi Capitals Women were the runners-up in the inaugural edition of the tournament and they will be hoping to go one better this time around.
The WPL 2024 is set to get underway with an encounter between Mumbai Indians Women and Delhi Capitals Women at M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru on February 23. The tournament is scheduled to be played at two venues in Bengaluru and Delhi.
DC Women, led by Meg Lanning, had a very good campaign in the inaugural season where they topped the group stage with six wins and a superior net run rate to Mumbai Indians. Delhi Capitals had a direct entry into the final but they ended up losing to MI Women by seven wickets.
All-rounders who could set the WPL 2024 alight
DC Women have a good blend of experience and youth in the squad and will be motivated to win the trophy this season. Before the season begins, let's take a look at the Delhi Capitals Women's full squad and the DC Women best playing XI for WPL 2024.
Delhi Capitals (DC) Women full squad for WPL 2024
Meg Lanning, Alice Capsey, Arundhati Reddy, Jemimah Rodrigues, Jess Jonassen, Laura Harris, Marizanne Kapp, Minnu Mani, Poonam Yadav, Radha Yadav, Shafali Verma, Shikha Pandey, Sneha Deepthi, Taniya Bhatia (wk), Titas Sadhu, Annabel Sutherland, Aparna Mondal (wk), Ashwani Kumari
DC Women best playing XI for WPL 2024
Delhi Capitals came up short in the inaugural WPL season but they had a good run with a strong squad. They retained most of the squad and brought in some quality players in the WPL auction, such as Annabel Sutherland, Aparna Mondal and Ashwani Kumari.
Sutherland’s addition could change the combination of the side with Jess Jonassen likely to be left out of the playing XI. Meg Lanning, Alice Capsey and Marizanne Kapp are three other certain overseas starters. Delhi Capitals Women also have some excellent Indian talents such as Shafali Verma, Jemimah Rodrigues, Radha Yadav and Titus Sadhu.
Looking at their squad, below is the list of the DC Women best playing XI for WPL 2024.
1. Meg Lanning (c)
Meg Lanning is the greatest captain in women's cricket and arguably even in all of cricket. Such are her accomplishments for Australia. She has retired from international cricket but will remain a key figure for DC Women. Lanning was outstanding in the previous WPL edition, earning the orange cap for most runs. She made 345 runs from nine innings at an average of 49 while striking at 139, including two fifties.
2. Shafali Verma
India's young star Shafali Verma will be a key part of the DC Women best playing XI in the WPL 2024. She continues to get better as a batter and has contributed for India with the ball as well. Shafali had a very good campaign in the WPL 2023, where she had the best season strike rate amongst all batters. She made 252 runs from nine innings at an average of 31 while striking at an incredible 185.29.
3. Alice Capsey
Alice Capsey is someone who plays as a disruptor in most of the sides. Her role is to keep attacking the bowlers and she can tear apart the bowling units on her day. In the last WPL season, Capsey scored 159 runs in seven innings at a strike rate of 156. She had also picked six wickets at 7.02 economy.
4. Jemimah Rodrigues
Jemimah Rodrigues is one of India's best batters and she is generally pretty reliable. She didn't get much game-time in the middle last season but still made a good contribution. She scored 126 runs from seven innings at an average of 25 while striking at 128. Jemimah has over 3400 runs in the shorter format at a strike rate of 120 while averaging 29.
5. Marizanne Kapp
The South African all-rounder is amongst the best players in the world across formats. Marizanne Kapp was crucial for Delhi Capitals last season, scoring 177 runs in seven innings at 44 average and 121 strike rate while picking nine wickets at 5.72 economy. She remains one of the first names on the DC Women best playing XI for WPL 2024.
6. Annabel Sutherland
Annabel Sutherland was the joint most expensive buy during the WPL 2024 auction, with Delhi Capitals spending INR 2 crore to acquire her. The Australian all-rounder, who recently scored a double century in a Test, adds a lot of value to the side. Sutherland snared 23 wickets from 14 games in the WBBL 2024 and scored 288 runs.
7. Shikha Pandey
The veteran Indian pacer Shikha Pandey had a pretty decent WPL season last year. She snared 10 wickets in the season at an economy of 6.59. She can be handy with the bat as well. Shikha had struck 27 off 17 in the final of the last season.
8. Radha Yadav
Radha Yadav could be the frontline spinner for Delhi Capitals if they choose to have Annabel Sutherland over Jess Jonassen in the playing XI. Radha Yadav has plenty of experience, having done the job for India over the years. She has 68 wickets in international T20s at 6.61 economy.
9. Arundhati Reddy
Arundhati Reddy has played 26 T20 internationals for India and picked 18 wickets. The right arm medium pacer who can bat a bit, Reddy could provide DC Women a good value. She played seven games for Delhi Capitals last season and has done well in the domestic circuit.
10. Taniya Bhatia (wk)
Taniya Bhatia will make into the DC Women best playing XI purely as a wicket-keeper. Her batting isn't suited for this format and she only made 5 runs from three innings in the previous season.
11. Titas Sadhu
The 19-year-old medium pacer has had international exposure recently and should help her get into the DC Women best playing XI. Titas Sadhu showed what she's capable of in the first T20I against Australia in January, where she claimed 4 for 17 in four overs.