Defending champs MI to take on RCB in WPL Season 4 opener on Jan 9

Harmanpreet Kaur-led defending champions Mumbai Indians will face 2024 winners Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the opening match of the fourth Women’s Premier League on January 9 at the DY Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai.

In a first for the tournament, the WPL final will not be held on a weekend, with the summit clash scheduled for a Thursday (February 5), likely to avoid a clash with the men’s T20 World Cup, which begins the same week in India and Sri Lanka.

The 28-day, 22-match WPL will be played across two venues.

DY Patil Stadium, which witnessed India’s maiden women’s ICC global title — the ODI World Cup win over South Africa earlier this month — will host the first 11 matches, including afternoon double-headers on January 10 and 17, as per the schedule announced on Saturday.

All the remaining games in this leg will be evening fixtures.

The league will then shift to the Kotambi Stadium in Vadodara, which will stage the remaining 11 matches, including the Eliminator on February 2 and the final on February 5.

This is also the first time the WPL will be played in a January-February window as the previous three editions were held in February–March, just before the IPL, often overlapping with international fixtures.

The format remains unchanged: with the five teams — Mumbai Indians, Royal Challengers Bengaluru, UP Warriorz, Gujarat Giants and Delhi Capitals — to play each other twice in a double round-robin.

The top team progresses straight to the final, while the second and third-placed sides face off in the Eliminator for the remaining spot.

Mumbai Indians have won two titles in three seasons, with RCB lifting the trophy in 2024.

Delhi Capitals have finished runners-up in each of the three editions, while Gujarat Giants and UP Warriorz are yet to reach a final.

Ten days after the WPL concludes, the Indian women’s team will embark on an all-format tour of Australia, featuring three T20Is, three ODIs and a Test from February 15-March 9.

WPL Season 4 schedule

In Navi Mumbai: January 9: Mumbai Indians vs Royal Challengers Bengaluru; Jan 10: UP Warriorz vs Gujarat Giants and Mumbai Indians vs Delhi Capitals; Jan 11: Delhi Capitals vs Gujarat Giants; Jan 12: Royal Challengers Bengaluru vs UP Warriorz; Jan 13: Mumbai Indians vs Gujarat Giants; Jan 14: UP Warriorz vs Delhi Capitals; Jan 15: Mumbai Indians vs UP Warriorz; Jan 16: Royal Challengers Bengaluru vs Gujarat Giants; Jan 17: UP Warriorz vs Mumbai Indians and Delhi Capitals vs Royal Challengers Bengaluru

In Vadodara: Jan 19: Gujarat Giants vs Royal Challengers Bengaluru; Jan 20: Delhi Capitals vs Mumbai Indians; Jan 22: Gujarat Giants vs UP Warriorz; Jan 24: Royal Challengers Bengaluru vs Delhi Capitals; Jan 26: Royal Challengers Bengaluru vs Mumbai Indians; Jan 27: Gujarat Giants vs Delhi Capitals; Jan 29: UP Warriorz vs Royal Challengers Bengaluru; Jan 30: Gujarat Giants vs Mumbai Indians; February 1: Delhi Capitals vs UP Warriorz   Eliminator: Feb 3; Final: Feb 5 (both in Vadodara).