The M. Chinnaswamy Stadium bore witness to a nail-biting spectacle as UP Warriorz clinched a dramatic 4-run victory in the first-ever Super Over in TATA WPL history. Sophie Ecclestone emerged as the hero, delivering a match-winning all-round performance—scoring a crucial 33 off 19 balls before holding her nerve in the decisive Super Over.

RCB suffered their second consecutive defeat despite Ellyse Perry leading RCB’s batting with a brilliant unbeaten 90 off 56 balls, which had propelled the hosts to a formidable 180/6. However, her brilliance went in vain as UPW, riding on back-to-back wins, held their nerve in a thrilling finish.

Sophie Ecclestone’s brilliance across all facets of the game proved to be the defining factor in this historic clash. Her all-round heroics rightfully earned her the Player of the Match award, making her the standout performer in a contest that will be remembered for years to come.

Chasing 181, UP Warriorz got off to a fiery start, thanks to Kiran Navgire’s explosive 24 off just 12 balls, which included four boundaries and a six. However, Renuka Singh Thakur’s precision ended her onslaught, breaching her defenses to hand RCB their first breakthrough. Renuka struck again soon after, dismissing Vrinda Dinesh cheaply.

Sneh Rana, making her RCB debut, made an instant impact, removing the experienced Tahlia McGrath via a sharp stumping in her very first over, leaving UPW at 57/3 after the powerplay. Captain Deepti Sharma then counterattacked with crisp strokes, smashing Rana for a four and a six in the 8th over. However, Rana ( 3 for 27 ) had the last laugh, luring Deepti (25 off 13) into a faint edge, brilliantly taken by Richa Ghosh behind the stumps.

With UPW in need of stability, Grace Harris and Shweta Sehrawat attempted to rebuild, but Smriti Mandhana’s decision to bring back Kim Garth ( 2 for 40 ) in the 11th over paid off instantly. Garth removed Harris, caught at long-on by Rana, reducing UPW to 103/5.

A promising stand between Uma Chetry and Sehrawat followed, but RCB struck in quick succession. Rana scalped Uma off the last ball of the 14th over, extending her dream return, before Ellyse Perry, continuing her sublime form, dismissed Sehrawat (31 off 25) on the very next delivery.

With 56 needed off 30, previous match hero Chinelle Henry walked in and wasted no time, launching Georgia Wareham for a six in the 16th over. But RCB found relief as Garth struck again, forcing Henry (8 off 10) to chop one onto her stumps, keeping the game on a knife’s edge.

With that big wicket, RCB believed the game was sealed, but Sophie Ecclestone ( 33 off 19 ) and Saima Thakor( 14 off 8) had other ideas. With 18 needed off the final over, Sophie launched two huge sixes off Renuka Thakur and followed up with a boundary, bringing the equation down to 2 from 2 deliveries. She took a single on the penultimate delivery, leaving 1 needed 1 in the last ball.

With tension at its peak, Kranti Goud was on strike. Renuka bowled it wide outside off, Kranti missed, but Sophie charged for a bye. Richa Ghosh was lightning quick, collecting the ball and sprinting to the stumps to run her out, tying the scores. The match was set for the first-ever super over in TATA WPL history.

In the Super Over, Grace Harris and Chinelle Henry came onto bat while Kim Garth was trusted with the bowling duties for RCB. Kim Garth lived up to the expectations and dismissed Chinelle Henry in the third delivery. She executed the rest of the deliveries perfectly and bowled a brilliant super-over and conceded only 8 runs.

Defending 9 runs, Sophie Ecclestone was given the responsibility with the ball while captain Smriti Mandhana and Richa Ghosh were the first two batters for RCB. And the Number 1 T2OI bowler did not disappoint at all. Sophie executed all her deliveries to perfection and conceded just 4 runs when the pressure was high and 2 points were on the line. It was a famous win for the Deepti Sharma-led UP Warriorz who secured their back-to-back wins.

Earlier today, UP Warriorz won the toss and, unsurprisingly, opted to bowl first. Danni Wyatt-Hodge set the tone early, pulling Grace Harris for a six on the first ball of the second over. She had a slice of luck in the same over when Shweta Sehrawat dropped her at backward point on just eight—a costly miss.

Wyatt-Hodge kept the scoreboard ticking, but UPW skipper Deepti Sharma provided the much-needed breakthrough in the fourth over, outfoxing her counterpart Smriti Mandhana (6 off 9) with a sharp arm-ball. It marked the third time in five innings that Deepti had dismissed Smriti.

Ellyse Perry walked in and wasted no time, dispatching Sophie Ecclestone for consecutive boundaries in the fifth over before lofting Saima Thakor for a stunning six over long-on, taking RCB to 42/1 at the end of the powerplay. Perry’s fluent strokeplay, complemented by Wyatt-Hodge’s rotation of strike, saw the duo bring up a 50-run stand off 43 balls, propelling RCB to 75/1 by the 11th over.

Perry, the all-time leading run-scorer in the TATA WPL, brought up her third fifty of the season in just 36 balls—her seventh overall, the joint-most in the league. Wyatt-Hodge upped the ante, smashing three consecutive boundaries off Kranti Goud in the 13th over, before reaching her maiden WPL half-century with a towering six off Ecclestone.

Tahlia McGrath finally broke the 94-run stand, dismissing Wyatt-Hodge (57 off 41), with Sehrawat redeeming herself with the catch. Richa Ghosh came in with intent, opening her account with a straight-driven boundary but fell soon after to a sharp Chinelle Henry bouncer.

Deepti returned to remove Kanika Ahuja with the help of a sharp run out by Uma Chetry, but Perry unleashed absolute carnage in the 19th over, plundering 16 runs off the UPW captain. Her unbeaten 90 off 56 balls, laced with nine fours and three sixes, powered RCB to a formidable 180/6. This was also Perry’s highest individual score in the WPL and this was another masterclass that electrified the home crowd. With a well-set Ellyse Perry on strike going at full throttle in the last over, Sophie Ecclestone bowled a brilliant over and conceded only 6 runs including a run-out in the last delivery which at the end proved to be the crucial point of difference.

Brief scores: UP Warriorz 180/10 in 20 overs (Ecclestone 31, Rana 3-27) beat Royal Challengers Bengaluru 180/6 in 20 overs (Ellyse Perry 90*, Wyatt-Hodge 57, Chinelle Henry 1-34).

Super Over: UP Warriorz 8/1 ( Chinelle Henry 4, Garth 1-6)
Royal Challengers Bengaluru ( Mandhan 2, Ecclestone 0-4)

The full scorecard and match details can be found here.