Creating an Indian Premier League for women had been a topic of much interest and discussion for several years. The main reason for starting the WPL was to improve the quality and competitiveness of women’s cricket in India, similar to the impact of the Women’s Big Bash League (WBBL) in Australia. After many years of planning, the Women’s IPL finally launched in 2023.
A Brief History of the Women’s IPL
The first significant women’s Twenty20 competition in India was the Women’s T20 Challenge, which started as a single-match event in 2018. It expanded to a three-team format with three matches in 2019, and continued this way in 2020 and 2022. This format increased interest in the league, leading to a rise in cricket betting, with global betting companies focusing on the Women’s IPL. Our team of betting experts has created a list of recommended PayPal betting sites for those interested in betting on either the Women’s league or the IPL.
In February 2022, Sourav Ganguly, the then BCCI President, announced plans to replace the Women’s T20 Challenge with a full women’s Indian Premier League.
On January 28, 2023, the BCCI invited bids for the title sponsorship of the league until 2027. The Tata Group won the bid for an undisclosed amount. The Mumbai Indians became the first winners of the tournament, defeating the Delhi Capitals in the final.
Women’s Premier League Winners List
Season
Winner
Winning Margin
Runner-up
Final Venue
Player of the Match
Player of the Season
2023
Mumbai Indians
134/3 (19.3 overs) won by 7 wickets
Delhi Capitals
Brabourne Stadium, Mumbai
Nat Sciver-Brunt (MI)
Hayley Matthews (MI)
2024
Royal Challengers Bangalore
115/2 (19.3 overs) won by 8 wickets
Delhi Capitals
Arun Jaitley Cricket Stadium, New Delhi
Sophie Molineux (RCB)
Deepti Sharma (UPW)
WPL 2023 Overview
The 2023 Women’s Premier League was the first season of the league, held from March 4 to March 26, 2023, with five teams participating. A total of 23 matches took place in the group stage, followed by the Eliminator and the Final.
In the Eliminator, the Mumbai Indians beat the UP Warriorz by 72 runs to reach the final. The Delhi Capitals advanced to the final without needing to play a knockout match, as they topped the points table after the league stage.
In the final, the Mumbai Indians faced the Delhi Capitals at the Cricket Club of India in Mumbai. The Delhi Capitals, captained by Meg Lanning, won the toss and chose to bat first. They faced difficulties, losing Shafali Verma for 12 runs and Alice Capsey for a duck. Lanning was run out after scoring 35 runs. However, Radha Yadav scored 27 runs off 12 balls, helping the team reach a total of 131 runs.
In response, the Mumbai Indians were at 23 for two when captain Harmanpreet Kaur and Nat Sciver-Brunt steadied the innings, scoring 37 runs off 39 balls and 60 runs off 55 balls, respectively. Their contributions led Mumbai to victory in 19.3 overs.
Nat Sciver-Brunt was named Player of the Match for her vital innings, while Hayley Matthews received the Player of the Series award for taking 16 wickets and scoring 271 runs. Matthews also claimed the Purple Cap for the most wickets, and the Orange Cap went to Meg Lanning for scoring 345 runs in nine innings. Yastika Bhatia was recognized as the Emerging Player of the Season.
Sophie Devine of RCB had the highest individual score, with a stunning 99 runs off 36 balls against the Gujarat Giants. Tahlia McGrath of the UP Warriorz scored the most fifties, achieving four half-centuries. Sophia Dunkley of the Gujarat Giants recorded the fastest fifty, reaching it in just 18 balls against RCB. Shafali Verma and Sophie Devine both hit the most sixes in the tournament, each hitting 13 sixes.
Marizanne Kapp of the Delhi Capitals recorded the best bowling figures in an innings with five wickets for 15 runs against the Gujarat Giants. The highest team total was 223/2 by the Delhi Capitals against RCB, while the lowest total was 64 runs by the Gujarat Giants, who were all out against the Mumbai Indians.
The 2024 Women’s Premier League was the second season of the league. It was held from February 23 to March 17, 2024, with the same five teams from the first season. RCB defeated the Mumbai Indians in the Eliminator to set up a final against the Delhi Capitals.
RCB, captained by Smriti Mandhana, won the final against the Delhi Capitals by eight wickets at the Arun Jaitley Stadium, marking their first title in both men’s and women’s IPL.
The Delhi Capitals chose to bat first but struggled against RCB’s bowling, getting all out for just 113 runs, with Shafali Verma being the top scorer at 44 runs. Shreyanka Patil stood out with four wickets, and Sophie Molineux took three wickets.
RCB chased down the target in 19.3 overs, with contributions in the 30s from Mandhana, Sophie Devine, and Ellyse Perry.
Molineux was named Player of the Final for her excellent bowling, taking three wickets for only 20 runs in four overs.
Ellyse Perry of RCB won the Orange Cap for being the leading run-scorer with 341 runs in nine matches. Shreyanka Patil secured the Purple Cap for the most wickets.
Deepti Sharma of RCB was awarded the MVP for her all-around performance, scoring 295 runs at an average of 98.33 and taking 10 wickets at an average of 21.70.
Shafali Verma from the Delhi Capitals hit the most sixes in the tournament, smashing 20 sixes in nine matches.