RCB chasing WPL 2026 final berth, to face UP Warriorz:Must win game for UPW to remain alive in race for playoffs

The 18th match of Women’s Premier League (WPL) 2026 will be played today between Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) and UP Warriors (UPW). This match will start at 7:30 PM at the Kotambi Stadium in Vadodara. RCB has faced defeats in their last two matches, although the team had won their first five matches before this. Currently, RCB remains at the top of the points table and can secure their place directly in the final with a win against UP Warriors today. Meanwhile, UP Warriors are struggling to stay in the playoff race and are at the bottom fifth position in the points table. The team suffered a major setback when their top scorer Phoebe Litchfield, was ruled out of the tournament. RCB vs UPW, head-to-head records in WPL
Both teams will clash for the second time this season. In the previous match, RCB defeated UPW by 9 wickets. A total of 7 matches have been played between RCB and UP Warriors so far. RCB has won 4 of these matches, while UP Warriors have emerged victorious in 3 encounters. Phoebe Litchfield ruled out of remining matches
UP Warriors have included England’s wicketkeeper-batter Amy Jones in the team in place of injured Phoebe Litchfield for the remaining matches of WPL. Litchfield has been the team’s top scorer this season with 243 runs in 6 . After Litchfield’s exit, Meg Lanning is second in batting. She has scored 207 runs in 6 matches. In bowling, Sophie Ecclestone has led the team by taking 6 wickets in 6 matches. Smriti Mandhana is leading as RCB’s highest run-getter
Smriti Mandhana is looking in brilliant form for Royal Challengers Bangalore in WPL 2026. She has scored more than 200 runs in 7 matches, with her best score being 96 runs. Mandhana is the team’s top scorer. In bowling, Lauren Bell has taken the most wickets for the team. She has claimed 11 wickets in 7 matches. Vadodara weather report
On January 29, the weather in Vadodara (Kotambi Stadium) will be clear and sunny. The temperature will be a maximum 28 degrees Celsius and a minimum 19 degrees Celsius on this day. The temperature will be slightly lower at night and mild cold may be felt. RCB vs UPW, probable playing XI
UPW: Meg Lanning (c), Kiran Navgire, Amy Jones (wk), Harleen Deol, Chloe Tryon, Deepti Sharma, Shweta Sehrawat, Sophie Ecclestone, Asha Shobana, Shikha Pandey, Kranti Gaud. RCB: Smriti Mandhana (c), Grace Harris, Dayalan Hemalatha, Nadine de Klerk, Richa Ghosh (wk), Gautami Naik, Linsey Smith, Shreyanka Patil, Arundhati Reddy, Radha Yadav and Lauren Bell.