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Smriti Mandhana fell agonisingly short of a maiden Women's Premier League century, but her commanding 96 guided Royal Challengers Bengaluru to a convincing eight-wicket win over Delhi Capitals at the Dr DY Patil Sports Academy on Saturday.

RCB chased down the target of 167 with ten balls to spare, completing a clean sweep of the Navi Mumbai leg with four wins from four matches to remain unbeaten at the top of the WPL 2026 points table. The only blemish on an otherwise dominant display was Mandhana's dismissal on 96, denying the league its first century. After winning the toss, Smriti Mandhana opted to bowl, a decision that paid rich dividends early on. Lauren Bell struck twice in a sensational opening over, removing Lizee Lee for 4 and Laura Wolvaardt for a duck. The pressure mounted when Sayali Satghare, playing in place of Ellyse Perry, claimed two wickets in her next over, dismissing Jemimah Rodrigues and Marizanne Kapp on successive deliveries as Delhi slumped to 10 for 4 inside two overs. Delhi were reeling before Shafali Verma launched a counterattack, scoring 62 off 41 balls with five fours and four sixes. She added 59 runs for the fifth wicket with Niki Prasad, who struggled for fluency and was dismissed for 12 after being dropped earlier by Gautami Naik. Shafali continued to dominate the middle overs, with support from Sneh Rana, who made 22 off 22 balls. Bell broke the partnership in the 17th over by dismissing Shafali, but debutant Lucy Hamilton provided late impetus with a brisk 36 off 19 balls. N Sree Charani added 11 as Delhi were bowled out on the final delivery for 166. Bell finished with 3 for 26, Satghare took 3 for 27, Prema Rawat claimed 2 for 16 and Nadine de Klerk picked up 1 for 31, while Nandani Sharma was run out off the last ball. RCB's reply began with an early setback when Marizanne Kapp dismissed Grace Harris in the first over. That proved to be Delhi's lone bright moment as Mandhana and Georgia Voll took control, stitching together a record 142-run partnership for the second wicket. Mandhana dominated the bowling with assured strokeplay before falling for 96 off 61 balls. Voll, after a cautious start, finished unbeaten on 54 off 42 deliveries, while Richa Ghosh added 7 off 4 balls to seal a comprehensive win. With four victories on the trot, RCB remain firmly in command of the tournament. Delhi Capitals, meanwhile, were left with little to cheer after another disappointing outing. Brief scores: Delhi Capitals 166 all out in 20 overs (Shafali Verma 62, Lucy Hamilton 36; Lauren Bell 3-26, Sayali Satghare 3-27) lost to Royal Challengers Bengaluru 169 for 2 in 18.2 overs (Smriti Mandhana 96, Georgia Voll 54 not out; Marizanne Kapp 1-21, Nandini Sharma 1-34) by eight wickets.