The closing ceremony is currently underway and it looks like the toss could be delayed.

Pitch report | Natalie Germanos and Mithali Raj: Pitch is closer to the center. Square boundaries are 56 meters and 55 meters. Straight boundary is 69 meters. It's a fresh pitch for today. The pitch looks dry and is rolled well. Pretty hard surface - good wicket to bat and lot of runs in store for the batters. There was a lot of dew in the previous game. It is cooler this evening so maybe there won't be that much dew.

We've had three matches at Brabourne Stadium this season, and all three have been won by the team that has been put in to bat despite the presence of dew later on.

Nat-Sciver Brunt is just seven runs shy of scoring 500 runs for the season, by far the leading run-scorer of the tournament so far. Hayley Matthews has also struck form with the bat in the last few matches, while also being the leading wicket-taker with 17 wickets. The two of them have been instrumental in the success of Mumbai Indians and will once again be the focus of attention this evening.

Both teams have incredible talent at their disposal. For MI, the likes of Hayley Matthews, Nat Sciver-Brunt and Harmanpreet Kaur have set the stage on fire these last few days. On the other hand, DC possess plenty of firepower in the form of Shafali Verma and Meg Lanning at the top, followed by Jess Jonassen, Jemimah Rodrigues, Annabel Sutherland and Marizanne Kapp.

The schedule of this past week leading into the final has been very different for both teams. While the Delhi Capitals have enjoyed the whole week off, Mumbai Indians have played three matches in four days, including the Eliminator against Gujarat Giants on Thursday.

6.40pm local: Hello everyone! It's the night of the big final in WPL 2025! After nearly a month of matches across four cities involving five different teams, we are left with Mumbai Indians and Delhi Capitals who will fight it out for the title at Brabourne Stadium. If that sounds familiar, it's because we had the same two teams going head-to-head in the final of the inaugural edition in 2023. Harmanpreet Kaur's MI lifted the trophy on that occasion. A year later, DC topped the table and reached the final again, only to receive the runners-up medal again. This is the third straight final for Meg Lanning's team who will be desperate for a different outcome.

Preview by Purnima Malhotra

In a rematch of the title showdown from the inaugural season, a directly-qualified Delhi Capitals will yet again take on home team Mumbai Indians at the Brabourne Stadium on Saturday (March 15), hoping to get third-time lucky and lift the first-ever title for the franchise across board.

Since landing in their home city for the final leg of WPL 2025, Mumbai Indians have played three games in four days - with success in two, including the do-or-die Eliminator- and seem to be running on autopilot almost. In sharp contrast, Delhi wrapped up their group stage games in Lucknow, had a weekend getaway, and have only had three practice sessions in these conditions heading into the all-important final. If there are concerns of burnout in the MI camp, there's equal apprehension about rustiness in DC's.

It's partly down to poor scheduling, but for Meg Lanning it is what it is. "We have got lots of energy within the group and I am really excited about the opportunity that we have given ourselves to go out there and play our best game," the DC skipper said on the eve of the finale. "In terms of the conditions we have been watching the games on TV... We have trained out here as well and a lot of players have played here before so that is certainly not an issue for us. Like with any game at any ground that you go to you need to assess what the conditions are and adjust accordingly and that is no different for us tomorrow night."

MI, on the other hand, are banking on this familiarity gained with the CCI over this week. "In a way it is an advantage because we know the conditions really well," Harmanpreet Kaur said on Friday. "We played three games in four days and we know what area to bowl, how to bat and how to execute yourself in a better way in which overs, and in which overs we need to maybe hold back and not lose too many wickets. We've understood a lot of things in the three games here - how to bat, how to bowl and day by day we have seen that improvement."

Not that rhythm or history holds much water when it comes to the big final, DC did pull off the double against MI in two very contrasting games this WPL. A nerve-wracking final-ball one-wicket victory in their tournament opener in Vadodara may not have been the most convincing, or DC-like of them, but a much more comprehensive - one-sided even - thrashing in Bengaluru admittedly had the Capitals finding their peak just at the right time with a near-perfect game. Courtesy of that, Lanning & co. also enjoy an overall 4-3 edge over the hosts in head-to-head records even as MI memorably clinched the first of the three finals the Capitals have been a part of to be crowned the inaugural champions in 2023.

Battle-hardened Mumbai will be out to remedy the hurt of the narrow defeat in last year's Eliminator, following a batting capitulation that robbed them of a chance to defend their title. On the other hand, after making a third straight final without taking the Eliminator detour, DC would be eager to stamp their authority with a trophy that has eluded them twice in as many years.

When: Saturday, March 15 at 7:30 PM IST

Where: Brabourne Stadium, Mumbai

What to expect: A fresh, batting-friendly pitch is in store for the finale that might later also assist the slower bowlers. Despite the significant presence of dew, all three games at this venue have been won by sides batting first, having yielded first-innings totals in three different ranges. Chasing has been preferred throughout the season, but MI did admit after the Eliminator that being asked to bat first turned out to be a blessing in disguise on a new track, and may well be the case for the final as well.

Team News

Mumbai Indians: MI restored their opening combination and skipper Harmanpreet Kaur did not seem too displeased with Yastika's impact knock up top. Expect that to stay the same for the final. The home side may bring back Parunika Sisodia though, leaving Saika Ishaque on the bench once more.

Probable XI: Hayley Matthews, Amelia Kerr, Nat Sciver-Brunt, Harmanpreet Kaur (C), Amanjot Kaur, Yastika Bhatia (wk), Sajeevan Sajana, G Kamalini, Sanskriti Gupta, Shabnim Ismail, Saika Ishaque/Parunika Sisodia

Delhi Capitals: Titas Sadhu could be the one making way for an extra spin option, likely N Charani.

Probable XI: Meg Lanning (C), Shafali Verma, Jess Jonassen, Jemimah Rodrigues, Annabel Sutherland, Marizanne Kapp, Sarah Bryce (wk), Niki Prasad, Minnu Mani, Shikha Pandey, Titas Sadhu/N Charani

Did you know?

- The average first innings score at the CCI in WPL 2025 is 197

- Of the eight batters across the two teams who have at least a 100 runs at this venue in WPL, neither had a better average than Meg Lanning's 84.75. Nat Sciver-Brunt is the leading run-scorer here with a tally of 535 runs in 12 innings at 76.42

- Shabnim Ismail has dismissed the DC openers Lanning and Shafali Verma five times each in all T20s

- Marizanne Kapp has had the wood over Hayley Matthews, dismissing the West Indies batter 10 times in 34 T20 innings

Squads:

Delhi Capitals Women Squad: Meg Lanning(c), Shafali Verma, Jess Jonassen, Jemimah Rodrigues, Annabel Sutherland, Marizanne Kapp, Sarah Bryce(w), Niki Prasad, Minnu Mani, Shikha Pandey, Titas Sadhu, Radha Yadav, Arundhati Reddy, Alice Capsey, Taniya Bhatia, Sneha Deepthi, Nandini Kashyap, Nallapureddy Charani

Mumbai Indians Women Squad: Yastika Bhatia(w), Hayley Matthews, Nat Sciver-Brunt, Harmanpreet Kaur(c), Sajeevan Sajana, Amelia Kerr, Amanjot Kaur, G Kamalini, Sanskriti Gupta, Shabnim Ismail, Saika Ishaque, Chloe Tryon, Nadine de Klerk, Keerthana Balakrishnan, Jintimani Kalita, Parunika Sisodia, Amandeep Kaur, Akshita Maheshwari