Ashleigh Gardner reveals the main reason behind Gujarat Giants’ heartbreaking WPL 2026 eliminator defeat against Delhi Capitals

In a high-stakes encounter at the BCA Stadium in Vadodara, the Capitals of Delhi (DC) have regained their authority on the Premier League Women (WPL). The 2026 Eliminator, held on February 3, saw a clinical Delhi side dismantled Gujarat Giants (GG) by seven wickets to secure their place in the grand final. Despite a late-innings surge from the Giants, the Capitals chased down the 169-run target with more than four overs to spare, leaving the Gujarat camp to ponder what could have been.

Ashleigh Gardner explains what went wrong in Gujarat Giants’ WPL 2026 eliminator defeat against Delhi Capitals

After the defeat, the captain of Gujarat Giants Ashleigh Gardner was candid about the shortcomings that led to her team’s departure. While Beth Mooney‘s bouncy 62 from 51 balls and Georgia Wareham‘s 35 helped the Giants recover from a disastrous start of 59/4 to reach 168/7, Gardner admitted the total was only defensible if the bowling unit performed perfectly.

During the post-match presentation, Gardner cited the inability to apply pressure during the Powerplay as the main catalyst for the loss.

“We felt like it was clearly defensible, but yeah, I think, like I said, if you don’t really apply pressure early with the ball in the Powerplay, the other team kind of gets involved.Gardner explained.

The Australian all-rounder noted that the presence of dew later in the evening made the task even more difficult for her bowlers. She lamented the lack of discipline and stated that the team missed the stumps a little too much and gave Delhi too many free hits too early. Gardner highlighted that against an aggressive side like Delhi, the inability to adapt to their attacking mentality proved fatal.

“We obviously know the way they play. They want to attack the bowler and put you under pressure and they did that very well tonightGardner concluded.

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Delhi Capitals secure historic fourth consecutive final berth in WPL

The chase was a masterclass in controlled aggression. Delhi’s Opening Lines, Shafali Verma And Lizelle Leeeffectively ended the match within the first six overs. The duo posted a thrilling 89-run stand, with Lee hitting 43 off 24 balls and Verma contributing 31 off 21. Their attack ensured that even then Georgia Wareham struck twice in one go to remove both, the run speed required remained well controlled.

Rodrogueleading from the front, played a Player of the Match winning knock of 41 from 23 balls. In addition to the composed Laura Wolvaardt (32), Rodrigues navigated the middle overs with ease. The victory was then sealed Marizanne Kapp reached the winning boundary in the 16th over to end at 169/3.

With this win, the Capitals have achieved the remarkable feat of reaching the WPL final in every edition of the tournament since its inception in 2023. They now face a blockbuster final against Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) on February 5, hoping their fourth consecutive appearance will finally bring their first title.

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This article was first published on WomenCricket.coma Cricket Times company.