The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) will conduct the Women’s Premier League (WPL) mini-auction in Mumbai on Saturday, December 9, as all five franchises will try to fine-tune their squads.
A total of 165 players will compete for 30 spots, including nine from overseas, 104 Indians, and 61 from overseas, including 15 from Associate nations.
56 capped players and 109 uncapped players might go under the hammer in the auction. The second edition of the WPL will most likely be held in February-March, before the IPL. In contrast to the initial edition, which was held in a single city, the 2024 edition will be held in Mumbai and Bangalore.
With the largest purse going into the WPL auction on Saturday, last season’s wooden spooner Gujarat Giants will attempt to fix the holes ahead of the league’s 2024 edition, while the four other teams will be looking to fine-tune their squads.
WPL 2024 AUCTION: LIVE STREAMING DETAILS
Where to watch the Women’s Premier League 2024 auction live on TV?
The Women’s Premier League 2024 auction will be broadcast live on the Sports18 network in India.
Where to watch live-streaming of the Women’s Premier League 2024 auction in India?
Viewers in India may watch the Women’s Premier League 2024 auction live on the JioCinema app and website.
WPL 2024 AUCTION: PRICE TALK
Deandra Dottin and Kim Garth are the two players with the highest reserve price of Rs 50 lakh. Annabel Sutherland and Georgia Wareham, both Australian all-rounders who competed in the first WPL, have a base price of Rs 40 lakh.
South Africa’s Shabnim Ismail and England’s Amy Jones are the other two players with a base price of Rs 40 lakh. Veteran Indian cricketers Veda Krishnamurthy, Poonam Raut, Sushma Verma, Ekta Bisht, Gouher Sultana and Mona Meshram are in the auction with a starting price of Rs 30 lakh.
Australia’s Erin Burns and Sophie Molineux, England’s Danni Wyatt and Tammy Beaumont, Sri Lanka skipper Chamari Athapaththu and South Africa’s Nadine de Klerk are the other
WPL 2024 AUCTION: PURSE, RETAINED LIST OF ALL TEAMS
MUMBAI INDIANS
Remaining Purse: Rs 2.10 crore
Slots Available: 5 (1 overseas)
Champions Mumbai Indians also have five slots available, including one overseas. With a purse of Rs 2.1 crore, MI did not lose much in terms of player release because their core remains intact, as does skipper Harmanpreet Kaur’s approach of stacking the playing XI with all-rounders. The Mumbai Indians may look for young players to add to their camp and groom for the future.
Amanjot Kaur, Amelia Kerr*, Chloe Tryon*, Harmanpreet Kaur, Hayley Matthews*, Humairaa Kaazi, Isabelle Wong*, Jintimani Kalita, Natalie Sciver*, Pooja Vastrakar, Priyanka Bala, Saika Ishaque, Yastika Bhatia
Released Players
Dhara Gujjar, Heather Graham*, Neelam Bisht, Sonam Yadav
DELHI CAPITALS
Remaining Purse: Rs 2.25 crore
Slots Available: 3 (1 overseas)
Delhi Capitals have a purse of Rs 2.25 crore and will have a maximum limit of adding three players, including one overseas, since their squad strength stands at 15 going into the auction.
Retained Players
Alice Capsey*, Arundhati Reddy, Jemimah Rodrigues, Jess Jonassen*, Laura Harris*, Marizanne Kapp*, Meg Lanning*, Minnu Mani, Poonam Yadav, Radha Yadav, Shefali Verma, Shikha Pandey, Sneha Deepthi, Taniyaa Bhatia, Titas Sadhu
Released Players
Aparna Mondal, Jasia Akhter, Tara Norris*
UP WARRIORZ
Remaining Purse: Rs 9.5 crore
Slots Available: 5 (1 overseas)
UP Warriorz will have Rs 4 crore to work with to fill five spots, one of which will be overseas. There were numerous encouraging performances for a squad that finished third in the five-team competition, led by skipper Alyssa Healy.
However, after losing someone as skilled and experienced as South Africa’s Ismail, the UP Warriorz are likely to look for another frontline fast bowler to improve their attack while also filling the vacuum left by Devika Vaidya’s departure.
Retained Players
Alyssa Healy*, Anjali Sarvani, Deepti Sharma, Grace Harris*, Kiran Navgire, Lauren Bell*, Laxmi Yadav, Parshavi Chopra, Rajeshwari Gayakwad, S. Yashasri, Shweta Sehrawat, Sophie Ecclestone*, Tahlia Mcgrath*
Released Players
Devika Vaidya, Shabnim Ismail*, Shivali Shinde, Simran Shaikh
GUJARAT GIANTS
Remaining Purse: Rs 5.95 crore
Slots Available: 10 (3 overseas)
The Gujarat Giants’ table may be the busiest during the auction, as they have the largest purse ($5.95 million) and the task of finding 10 new players to rebuild their squad after a disappointing first season.
The Giants will attempt to strengthen their bench after losing some great overseas players such as Sutherland, Wareham, Garth, and Sophia Dunkley. Thipatcha Putthawong, 19, of Thailand, who has already played 42 T20Is and has a remarkable economy rate of 4.14, has piqued the RCB’s curiosity.
Retained Players
Ashleigh Gardner*, Beth Mooney*, Dayalan Hemalatha, Harleen Deol, Laura Wolvaardt*, Shabnam Shakil, Sneh Rana, Tanuja Kanwer
Released Players
Annabel Sutherland*, Ashwani Kumari, Georgia Wareham*, Hurley Gala, Kim Garth*, Mansi Joshi, Monica Patel, Parunika Sisodia, Sabbineni Meghana, Sophia Dunkley*, Sushma Verma
ROYAL CHALLENGERS BANGALORE
Remaining Purse: Rs 3.35 crore
Slots Available: 7 (3 overseas)
RCB, who lost six of their eight matches in the previous edition and missed the playoffs, has Rs 3.35 crore in the bank and needs another seven players, three of whom are from outside India, to complete their squad limit of 18 players.
Retained Players
Asha Shobana, Disha Kasat, Ellyse Perry*, Heather Knight*, Indrani Roy, Kanika Ahuja, Renuka Singh, Richa Ghosh, Shreyanka Patil, Smriti Mandhana, Sophie Devine*
Released Players
Dané Van Niekerk*, Erin Burns*, Komal Zanzad, Megan Schutt*, Poonam Khemnar, Preeti Bose, Sahana Pawar